User Reviews

"Beggars of Life" is (and I hate to use this word) awesome. Louise Brooks takes command of this photoplay right away and makes it her own. Watch her act with her facial expressions in the scene inside the haystack. Brooks' acting is very subtle and is quite effective. She is in good company with Richard Arlen, always a fine actor, and Wallace Beery, whose portrayal of the complex Oklahoma Red is excellent. The all-male supporting cast is also of high quality. This is a first rate cinematic event with a first rate actress and supporting cast. It is something modern day film audiences should not miss.

Notable for its tautly realistic performances and unrelentingly downbeat atmosphere, "Beggars of Life" is put over with considerable power by director Wellman who makes the most of his location material with a real train on the San Diego-Yuma railroad.

Although it's hard to tell in the print under review, the photography by Henry Gerrard was also a potent ingredient; and certainly the remarkably astute film editing by Alyson Shaffer also aids both the film's tight pace and its ability to grip the viewer.

With her beguiling face and charismatic presence, Louise Brooks rivets attention from start to finish as the wanted girl and even manages to outshine Wallace Beery who pulls out all his usual thespian tricks as a good badman.

Handsome hobo Richard Arlen (as Jim) is hungry. Smelling breakfast as he passes by a home, Mr. Arlen ventures inside to beg for food. Arlen is startled to discover the body of a dead man, as beautiful Louise Brooks (as Nancy) descends her stairway to explain. Tired of waiting on the pawing man, Ms. Brooks shot her sexually abusive guardian. Believing Brooks story (and taken by her beauty), Arlen invites her to accompany him east. They hop a freight train with Brooks disguised as a boy, to deter the police. Love blooms when the two share a bed made in hay. Arlen's "leg-locking" and Brooks' look of approval are part of these actors' well-played scene. With the police on their trail, Arlen and Brooks fall in with a group of hobos.

Brooks' disguise as Arlen's "kid brother" only lasts so long, and she is discovered as a girl. This arouses the interest of boozy tramp leader Wallace Berry (as Okalahoma Red). When their gang of hobos hitches a ride on another train, Mr. Berry wants to throw Arlen overboard and rape Brooks. Berry's swaggering introduction, with a keg of ale for the hobos, is a jolt - as we hear his voice in a "synchronized sound effected" film. Berry, who is billed over Arlen and Brooks, quickly becomes a major character. His change during the last act becomes one of the film's problems. Still, this is still a fine-looking production (despite the prints available).

You get "Wings" director William A. Wellman with one of his greatest stars (Arlen), a fine new actress (Brooks), and one of the movies' most popular character players (Berry). And, hang on tight for some exciting train sequences.

******** Beggars of Life (9/22/28) William A. Wellman ~ Richard Arlen, Louise Brooks, Wallace Berry, Edgar Washington

and this film proves it. Beggars of Life is a gritty tale set against some beautiful images in the way that Sunrise or Days of Heaven used visual imagery. There are some stunning scenes and great camera work. William Wellman directs. Brooks stars as a girl on the run with a man she meets (Richard Arlen). The picaresque tale takes them west as they try to get to Canada. They run into a hobo camp where Oklahoma Red (Wallace Beery) takes control of their destinies. Great performances by the stars. The camera work on the trains is great, and the stars do their own stunt work. Brooks was always a difficult star, and she paid the price by losing her Hollywood career. Too bad. This 1928 silent shows she had real talent. Although she gets 3rd billing, she is the center of this remarkably adult film about sin, love, lust, honor, and hope. Beery is good, but Arlen is wonderful in his "big brother" role. Roscoe Karns and Guinn Williams (familiar faces in 30s films) co-star. But Louise Brooks is the reason to see this, her best American film, especially if you've seen her German films with Pabst. A must!

I wish for nothing more than a valid version of this great movie on DVD. It's been a while since I last saw it, but the impression has been a lasting one. True empathy lasts through the ages and there is a poignancy about 'Beggars of Life' that is phenomenal. All actors shine in career-defining roles, direction is sensible to minuscule moods, and the overall effect is overpowering. One of the best flicks to come out of Hollywood in those pre-talkie days. Can't wait to see it again.

A really great film. Great action scenes, and yet there are a lot of subtle scenes with nuanced acting. The social themes - child abuse, the desperation of the poor - are quite as relevant today, and make it easy to relate to, especially with the fine acting of Arlen and Brooks. Although the tone is serious, the scenes with Beery introduce an element of broad comedy. Also progressive for its time by having a black character as a respected equal of the others.

The print is in fairly good condition, so this movie would probably gain wider appreciation if someone would write accompanying music specially for it.

Strange, uneven drama of life among America's hoboes (a year before the Wall St. Crash precipitated the Great Depression of the '30s). A bit too slow at times, but it looks great - and so does Louise Brooks in the world's most unconvincing disguise as a boy. Wallace Beery livens things up, but his bellicose nature is subdued by the lack of sound.

Artfully photographed, dark and riveting silent film following the story of a handsome tramp (Richard Arlen) who has entered a house looking for work, finds a man slumped over at the table and discovers he has been shot to death. A young lady (Louise Brooks) appears at the top of the stairs dressed in male clothing - she admits she killed the man (he "adopted" her from the orphanage two years before - okey dokey), but reasons that she did it to protect herself from being raped. So - they run off together and hitch a ride on a rail car to get out of town. The two of them soon arrive at a side of the railyard hobo camp where they encounter one really hardened, bully of a hobo (Wallace Beery) who actually ends up helping them. When she is recognized by one of the hobos as being a woman, the bunch want to get her away from her fellow and have her for themselves - oh dear, that struck me as a pretty bad/scary situation for a female to find herself in (the looks on these men's faces as they stared in lust at this poor girl were enough to frighten anyone)! Later "Wanted" posters begin to appear on signposts, as they discover she is now wanted for murder with a $1,000 reward offered for her capture.

I found this to be a very interesting and enjoyable film, full of some beautifully photographed scenes - Brooks and Arlen in close-up as they hide out one night in a hay loft, Brooks falling from a train into a grassy field, a montage of images in the beginning showing the decadence of the girl's "father" as he paws and pursues her. The plot is, in a few ways, reminiscent of the early 40s comedy "Sullivan's Travels" - the female dressed in male clothing stealing rides on rail cars with a male friend/lover, the hobo camp, etc. Interestingly, I thought Louise Brooks looked even more beautiful dressed as a boy than when she puts on a dress! All in all, this is a visual treat and a highly entertaining film.

The first movie I saw of Louise Brooks was in the fabulous "pandora's box" or "die buchse der pandora", which I still consider the best movie in silent film history. Impossible to be indifferent to Louise Brooks, with a fantastic performance, one of the best I've seen in film history. An actress, who, despite her short career, will always go down in history. In this 1928 film, "beggars of life" by director William Wellman, Louise is very well, with the curiosity to play a boy in about half of the film. Wallace Beery also has a powerful acting, he only enters the film about 30 minutes after its beginning. The film is not a masterpiece, but it is interesting and has good moments.

A little thin on plot, but seeing Louise Brooks helps make up for that. We feel her vulnerability and the danger of rape that she faces from the scowling men in the film, first her adoptive father, and then a group of hobos she meets while on the run with Richard Arlen. Director William A. Wellman does a good job of making us feel the grit and grime of this world, and gives quite a few train stunts as well, with people jumping aboard moving trains, decoupling cars, and slipping off perilously at various times. In her auto-biography 'Lulu in Hollywood', Brooks says that Wellman convinced her to take the place of her stunt double and hop aboard a fast-moving boxcar and that it nearly sucked her under its wheels, so it was interesting to look for that scene. The film loses momentum in the middle and has some silly scenes with the hobos (a free-for-all and a mock trial come to mind), but finishes reasonably well, and has a touch of sweetness to it. Watch it for Brooks, and Wellman's train scenes.

Beggars Of Life (1928) : Brief Review -

Perhaps the only love story that has been ruled by the side character's legacy and tragedy. Beggars Of Life is nothing new; it's your old Romeo and Juliet tale with a crime angle. A girl murders her father, who has been forcing himself on her, and then is accompanied by a man who is off to hook a train. To hide from the law, the girl has to dress like a man, but still, it doesn't help much. The two are then surrounded by a gang that might or might not help her, as the girl has a reward in her name. The wannabe leader, Okalhama Red, is that side character I'm talking about who takes charge of the rest of the narrative. First he behaves like a bad man, and then, when the girl provokes him, he drops the toughness. He realises that these two are in love and has a change of heart. So changed that he later becomes the sole reason for their happiness, but does he get the credit? Well, that's where Beggars of Life is far ahead of its contemporaries. It's far smarter than the rest of the love stories of that time. I have never seen a love story from the silent era in which the supporting character is given so much importance that he almost changes the narrative into two parts and leaves you with two thoughts. Happiness and tragedy strike at the same time-that's how a metaphor is created there. Beggars of Life gives a much-needed twist and a much-needed boost to your old-school love story of two runaway lovers. There have been so many adaptations of this classic idea, but no film has managed to surpass it. I am not sure if I can call Wallace Beery a supporting actor or a lead actor. He is outstanding. A villain, a sidekick, a hero, and the reason who gives a new shape to the story-what a rare mix for any character of that time! Louise Brooks and Richard Arlen's chemistry works on a level. A great love story from the maker of "Wing," the William A. Wellman. Need I say more?

RATING - 7.5/10*

By - #samthebestest.

While she is known primarily for her work for G.W. Pabst in the German films Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl, Louise Brooks is phenomenal in William Wellman's movie of a young girl on the run after she murders her sexually abusive guardian. The opening scene, in which the murder takes place, is gorgeously imagistic and ranks (for me) as one of the most indelible moments in all of cinema. Richard Arlen and Wallace Beery are very good in their roles, but the movie belongs to Brooks, whose ability to underplay in the silent era -- when mugging and exaggeration were more the rule than the exception -- makes her seem ultra-contemporary. It is little wonder Brooks has such resonance with modern audiences.

Wallace Beery is very enjoyable in his role, and I understand he was the bigger star. But Louise Brooks is the highlight of this movie for me, her subtle charisma shines through splendidly.

I was not particularly wild about the male romantic lead, perhaps it's just a case of being contrasted by Brooks and Beery, not an easy situation for anyone to be in.

I did really enjoy the direction, it was shot beautifully, with eye to detail for the contrast of black and white. The action scenes towards the end of the movie were quite impressive and very well done.

'Beggars of Life' was seen for two primary reasons, other than my love of classic film of course. One was Louise Brooks, a luminous and powerful presence who sadly didn't transition that well to sound, but when there were directors that knew what her strengths were and used them to full advantage (especially GW Pabst) she was magnetic. The other was director William A Wellman, known for his uncompromising approach to difficult subjects.

Although Wellman may have done better films than 'Beggars of Life' overall, it is to me Brooks' best American film and among her better ones overall. 'Beggars of Life' may not be perfect in the pacing, but both Brooks and Wellman are represented very well indeed. As is Wallace Beery, not always a fan of his but he certainly gave fine performances. On the most part, 'Beggars of Life' was a very good film that started off excellently but lost its way later on.

Will start off with the many things that 'Beggars of Life' does incredibly well. It looks great with photography that is stylish with some inventive angles, the lighting has a nice moody atmosphere. The film was shot on locations and the locations themselves are remarkably evocative and not stagy at all, especially the railways. Wellman creates a lot of strong atmosphere, especially in the tense train action and the first half an hour, and nothing about the subject is sugar-coated or anything.

The film starts off brilliantly, with a startling opening and the chemistry between Brooks and Richard Arlen charms and intrigues. The ending is satisfying and didn't feel too neat. A typically photogenic looking Brooks is excellent, being intense and moving, showing that there were other directors besides Pabst that knew her strengths and made the most of them because that's what Wellman did. Arlen is youthful and sympathetic, and Beery really livens things up when he enters the picture without being hammy.

For all those great things, 'Beggars of Life' falls short of being flawless. The middle does tend to drag and doesn't have the meaty, explosive quality of the brilliant first third.

Did feel that a few scenes, especially the trial, suffered from being overlong and from being too silly.

On the whole though, very good. 8/10

After killing her adopted father in self-defense, a girl (Louise Brooks) is discovered by a passing hobo (Richard Arlen) looking for a meal. She explains what happened and he sympathizes. They run away together, planning to go to Canada, where he has an uncle. Along the way, they meet a sort of self-appointed King of the Hobos, named Oklahoma Red (Wallace Beery). He finds out that the girl is wanted, with a $1,000 bounty on her head. Will he help them escape or help himself to the reward money?

This is the first silent Beery film I'd seen, and even without hearing his booming voice, he still has a large presence. (plus, I read the title cards hearing his voice, anyway) Once he started doing talkies, I bet people really got a kick out of finally hearing him. First time I'd seen Brooks as well, and I enjoyed her role. This is a simple story done well, with enough ambiguity in the characters to keep you guessing how different situations will play out.

William A. Wellman is probably the most amazing director I did not know before setting out on my quest to become a movie aficionado. I have so far watched twelve of his films and liked every single one of them. Of these, 'Beggars of Life' is one of the best. In many ways it is a typical Wellman: It combines aspects of psychological drama with action and leads to a surprising ending. It is also a historically highly interesting portrait of the life of homeless people in the US in the years before the Great Depression - a time when for the majority of the population living standards were improving quickly. 'Beggars of Life' follows a young homeless man (Richard Arlen) who takes a girl (Nancy, played by Louise Brooks) under his wing (the girl has killed a man who had adopted her from an orphanage, only to sexually exploit her). Now, the two of them join a gang of hobos where Nancy is threatened with the same fate. The acting is wonderful. Brooks plays her role in the understated way typical of her (contemporary critics used to overacting on silent film felt she was not acting at all), and Arlen is excellent. One of the big roles is played by Wallace Beery (Oklahoma Red, a hobo leader) whose combination of threatening good humour and compassion is unique. The film moves quickly and offers a lot of suspense, mounting to a dramatic finale. All in all, this is one of the best 1920s pictures I have watched so far.

The film opens with a young vagrant looking through a window at an older man seated at a table with his back towards him. A large breakfast is laid out on the table and the onlooker approaches him to ask if he can spare anything. Only then does he see the bullet wound in the man's face and realizes that the killer, the man's adopted daughter, is still hiding on the premises. She tells him that she acted in self-defense after the man attempted to molest her.

Thus begins William Wellman's tale of hobos riding the rails in this Wallace Beery vehicle featuring a young Louise Brooks. The portrait of homeless lives in the late 1920's is surprisingly sympathetic, racially diverse, and morally complex.

Barely over 20, actress Louise Brooks was becoming the talk of Hollywood. Breaking into movies in 1925, she was a hot commodity when she was offered contracts from two studios, MGM and Paramount Pictures. She opted for Paramount. In her second film for the studio, Brooks was disguised as a boy escaping the law in September 1928's "Beggars of Life."

During the production of the William Wellman directed film, Brooks dated George Preston Marshall, the owner of a chain of laundromats and soon-to-be owner of NFL's Boston Braves. The actress considered herself as a liberated woman, and had dalliances with several famous men, including Charlie Chaplin. In the early weeks of filming, she apparently had a one-night stand with a stuntman, who falsely told his colleagues the next day the actress had vd. Brooks had just finalized her divorce from her first husband, Eddie Sutherland. Her co-star in "Beggars of Life" was Richard Arlen, a close friend of Sutherland. When the actor heard about her liaison with the stuntman, he treated her rudely. In addition, she was ordered by Wellman, director of the Academy's "Outstanding Picture" 1927's "Wings," to climb on moving trains, which, she claims, nearly killed her on a few occasions. Brooks wrote in her memoir, "I knew Billy (Wellman) was a phony brave man and consequently a woman-beater - all cowards revenge themselves on women - just by feel, especially when my butt hit the pavement." In short, she was getting pretty sick of Hollywood.

Sometimes adversity creates the best performances in actors and actresses. Film historians find her role in "Beggars of Life" the best performance of her American movies. Quinn Martin of the New York World wrote, "Here we have Louise Brooks, that handsome brunette, playing the part of a fugitive from justice, and playing as if she meant it, and with a certain impressive authority and manner. This is the best acting this remarkable young woman has done." Her part was especially grueling since she was the only woman amongst a group of extras, some actual homeless, who were unemployed hobos, recruited by the studio. Based on a 1925 Maxwell Anderson play from Jim Tully's 1924 novel 'Beggars of Life,' the movie version opens with Arlen playing Jim the hobo, who discovers Brooks, as Nancy, has killed her abusive foster father. The two hop trains in an attempt to escape to Canada, but they end up with a group of hobos. They soon find out she has a bounty on her head for murder.

Brooks made one more Hollywood film before checking out of the United States on the advice of her boyfriend Marshall to take up an offer by German director G. W. Pabst.

Like many later silent films, 'Beggars of life' is very direct as it begins - not to the point of forsaking subtlety, but to advance the plot quickly and maintain a steady pace. Just as swiftly, we're treated to inarguable excellence of craft in a medium that, while still developing, had grown quickly from where it stood even 10 years prior. Director William A. Wellman, cinematographer Henry W. Gerrard, and editor Alyson Shaffer all demonstrate a dexterity and keen mind both in practicing their art generally, and in working to build wonderfully fetching shots and scenes here specifically. From images overlaid on one another to close-ups, from angles obtained with carefully mounted cameras to tracking and framed shots, there's so much tremendous work poured into the very construction of the feature that readily, within mere minutes, makes it dynamic and grabbing. Filled with moments of tension, comedy, suspense, and drama, and heartfelt and sincere at all times, there are no two ways about it: this is an essential classic.

Louise Brooks was one of the truly great actresses of the silent era, wielding outstanding range, nuance, and physicality in her performances, in every little expression. She handily lights up the screen all by herself with terrific presence and strength of character that one can recognize in her very countenance - and 'Beggars of life' is simply another superb example of what she's capable of. Of course, this is never to count out her co-stars, and in this instance Richard Arlen, appearing opposite Brooks as "the boy," makes an especially strong impression with personality and poise to match his fairer half. Wallace Beery, given top billing alongside Brooks, is likewise fantastic as sleazy yet frank "Oklahoma Red," leaning into the overbearing boorishness of a tramp with unexpected insight. And still, everyone else in smaller supporting parts are just as swell as they bring their figures to life and help to realize the whole.

Just as with the fundamental build of the picture, and the acting, the writing is brilliantly sharp in all ways. As is true elsewhere among silent films, dialogue as related through intertitles is given sturdy consideration, and characters are penned with a surprising measure of depth and varied personality - but these aren't as important to this timeframe in cinema as the scene writing, and the overall narrative. And in both regards, 'Beggars of life' is fine indeed - spirited, lively, and absorbing as it plays with a variety of moods and circumstances. Moreover, to some degree it adopts airs of both adventure (a la 'Tom Sawyer,' or perhaps 'Stand by me'), and a coming-of-age story as the unnamed female protagonist goes through such wild experiences. Honestly, apart from maybe Buster Keaton's farcical romps, there aren't many silent features to come to mind that have so robust a sense of action.

And even still, there's also a fabulous intelligence underpinning this picture, with smart details rounding out every last element. Brooks was known for it, and there's no mistaking it here: she and her fellow cast members all illustrate a natural, fluid ease of expression and body language, running counter to the pointedly exaggerated depictions common to earlier silent features - and with that, every small shift in emotion, and every turn in the plot, can be read in the actors' performances as though we were perusing the most verbose and poetic of tomes. In conjuration and realization alike - screenplay, direction, editing, cinematography - there's dazzling attentiveness to how every shot and scene is built, and to what we see therein, down to the tiniest of moments that serve to advance the plot and pique our interest. All this is to say nothing of the care poured into costume design, hair and makeup, set design, stunts and effects, and every last minute facet.

There are only so many ways to describe such unswerving high quality. I could go on but I'd only be repeating myself - in every possible aspect, I think this is all but perfect. Louise Brooks is breathtaking, of course, but so are her co-stars, and so is the writing, and so on and so on. I recognize that silent films sometimes aren't easy to abide for all audiences, yet 'Beggars of life' bears a vibrancy that I'm inclined to believe leaves behind those traits that may be most difficult for some viewers. It's engrossing, exciting, and stimulating in ways more akin to sound features of subsequent years - yet without any need for audio. When all is said and done, I think this is an exceptional picture that's well worth seeking out - standing the test of time to earn my enthusiastic recommendation!

This is an entertaining film containing passages of alarming sentimentality that are neutralised by frank brutality (the brutality being provided by the indomitable Oklahoma Red - Wallace Beery - a thug with a conscience, and the psychopathic Black Mose - Edgar Washington).

Louise Brooks does very well as an imp of promise escaping a sinister rapist, and Richard Arlen is effective as her practical-minded (but not overly intelligent) beau. In fact I think this is just about the only one of her American films where Brooks gets the opportunity to do some real acting. It is thought that this was one of the first films to pioneer the androgynous look. The other stock players add to the drama, and the cinematography is well done.

Although Beery gets top-billing we do not see him until the latter half of the picture. This is just as well, because he does enough scene-stealing to compensate for his absence in the first half.

Brooks did not care for William Wellman, who appears to have been a hard task-master, and as she remarked in her memoirs: 'I knew Billy was a phoney brave man and consequently a woman-beater - all cowards revenge themselves on women - just by feel, especially when my ass hit the pavement in "Beggars of Life"'. This might be a reference to her failed attempt to board a moving train where the viewer (for once) gets some idea of how difficult a task this is. Of course Wellman might have been a little harsh with her because she was fast acquiring a reputation as an actress who was difficult to handle.

I write to amend this earlier complaint about an earlier print from Grapevine (see below). The newest release - 2015 - is much improved. Although a few parts seem to be from a 16mm reduction print (I'm no expert on this), most of the film is much easier to watch. It is brighter, correctly tinted and much sharper than the earlier film I had watched and reviewed here. Moreover, a completely new score by Jack Hardy matches the action on the screen and improves this release by 100%. While shopping, be sure to obtain this newest print released on January 16, 2015. EARLIER REVIEW: I finally obtained a copy of Beggars of Life having read and heard so much about it over the years. William Wellman does some remarkable things in this film including an interesting flashback technique superimposing a close-up of Louise Brooks as she relates details of the altercation with her adoptive guardian. Brooks is not quite at her Pandora's Box level, but she's close. Brooks' filmography is actually rather sparse. However this film coupled with Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl justify all the accolades she receives to this day. These films are true artistic achievements. In Beggars of Life, Wallace Beery is at his sleazy best as the hobo alpha-chimp who turns out to have a soft heart of gold and Richard Arlen, while maintaining his matinée idol good looks, is superb as he slips out of his boy-next-door persona. Roscoe ("Shapley's the name and that's how I like 'em") Karns and Guinn "Big Boy" Williams also have parts and each adds spice to the story. Unfortunately the only copy I could find was a VHS tape produced by Grapevine Video out of Arizona that appears to be dubbed off of a 16mm television print with music that has nothing to do with the story. I like Beery, Brooks and Arlen as well as Beethoven, but not in this particular mix. Grapevine Video even had the nerve to claim a copyright to the music!!! I am sure the film is in the public domain and I KNOW Beethoven is. As others have noted, a crisp DVD would be greatly appreciated. I understand a better print exists and that the Mont Alto Motion Picture orchestra accompanied the film at the SFSFF in 2008. Let's hope they get together and prepare a decent video release! It would be worth the effort as Beggars of Life is truly one of the great films of the late silent era and ranks, in my opinion, up there with The Crowd and Sunrise in its realism and with its fine performances.