Beggars of Life (1928) with Louise Brooks

Beggars of Life (1928) with Louise Brooks, Wichita s Silent MegaStar Beggars of Life (1928) is quite remarkable for its vivid portrayal of hobo life in a preDepression America and for the opening sequence of Louise Brooks under attack from her guardian who tries to rape her. After killing her treacherous caretaker, a girl tries to escape the country with a young vagabond. She dresses as a boy, they hop freight trains, quarrel with a group of hobos, and steal a car in their attempt to escape the police, and reach Canada. Beggars of Life presents a beautifully photographed portrait that is tough, gritty, realistic, and also a touching story that goes against the norm, especially in the context of 1920 s cinema. Louise Brooks is a film legend, and rightly so. This film is regarded as Brooks s best American movie. Part fairy tale, part picaresque, part documentary, Beggars of Life features actual hobos in bit parts and a story cowritten by the hobo memoirist, Jim Tully, but its strongest points emerge fro