# Great Dramas w/ Homeless Protagonist? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [April 8, 2021, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621 "2021-04-08T20:22:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MortSahlFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@MortSahlFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MortSahlFan)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2021, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/1 "2021-04-08T20:22:04Z")
There doesn’t seem to be many of them, probably because of the lack of commercial appeal, so there might extra pressure to make it great in an artistic way. Sult/Svält (1966, Henning Carlsen) based on the novel by Knut Hamsun is the first one that comes to mind. Although it’s not in my Top 10 or 20 list, I seem to recommend this to people, because it’s fascinating, centered around this man who is intriguing, artistic (writer), but who is destitute. I don’t wanna put any spoilers out there, but here’s the IMDB link > **[Hunger (1966) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061042/)** > > Hunger: Directed by Henning Carlsen. With Per Oscarsson, Gunnel Lindblom, Birgitte Federspiel, Knud Rex. In 1890, Pontus, the starving writer, wanders the streets of Christiania, in search of love and a chance to get his work published. All he meets... The full movie is on YouTube [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXBUe5bsDjA) ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2021, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/2 "2021-04-08T20:48:05Z")
I haven’t seen it yet, but I think _Nomadland_ likely qualifies. From the reviews I’ve seen the protagonist prefers to call herself “houseless” rather than “homeless”, but I am pretty sure she’d be counted as homeless under most definitions. > **[Nomadland (2020) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9770150/)** > > Nomadland: Directed by Chloé Zhao. With Frances McDormand, Gay DeForest, Patricia Grier, Linda May. A woman in her sixties, after losing everything in the Great Recession, embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling... Then there’s _The Lady in the Van_. Although I’m not sure if the real protagonist in that movie is Miss Shepherd (the lady who lives in the van) or Alan (the man who allows her to park her van in his driveway). > **[The Lady in the Van (2015) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3722070/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0)** > > The Lady in the Van: Directed by Nicholas Hytner. With Maggie Smith, Jim Broadbent, Clare Hammond, George Fenton. A man forms an unexpected bond with a transient woman living in her van that's parked in his driveway. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2021, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/3 "2021-04-08T20:54:16Z")
[The Fisher King](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fisher_King), though I’m not sure I would classify it as “great drama”. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2021, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/4 "2021-04-08T20:59:49Z")
The Grapes of Wrath comes to mind. > **[The Grapes of Wrath](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Grapes_of_Wrath)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > > > The Grapes of Wrath is an American realist novel written by John Steinbeck and published in 1939. The book won the National Book Award > and Pulitzer Prize for fiction, and it was cited prominently when Steinbeck was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1962. > Set during the Great Depression, the novel focuses on the Joads, a poor family of tenant farmers driven from their Oklahoma home by drought, economic hardship, agricultural industry changes, and bank... ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2021, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/5 "2021-04-08T21:13:02Z")
If I remember correctly, wasn’t Jean Valjean homeless for a short time at the beginning of _Les Misérables_? But he wasn’t homeless for most of the novel/play/film, so I don’t know if that qualifies or not. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2021, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/6 "2021-04-08T21:35:17Z")
_Oliver Twist_ although I guess Oliver usually managed to be taken in by someone. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2021, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/7 "2021-04-08T21:46:53Z")
The title character of _Inside Llewyn Davis_ is functionally homeless - he has no home and no money, and basically couch-surfs with “friends” until they grow tired of him and kick him out. It’s not quite sleeping under a bridge, but that’s obviously his next step. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2021, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/8 "2021-04-08T22:19:08Z")
_Hero_ > **[Hero (1992 film)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero_(1992_film))** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Hero (released in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia as Accidental Hero) is a 1992 American comedy-drama film directed by Stephen Frears. It was written by David Webb Peoples from a story written by Peoples, Laura Ziskin and Alvin Sargent and stars Dustin Hoffman, Geena Davis, Andy García, Joan Cusack and Chevy Chase (uncredited). Following the critically acclaimed The Grifters (1990), it was the second American feature film by British film... Andy Garcia plays a homeless man who is lionized for saving lives after a plane crash. Except he didn’t have anything to do with it. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2021, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/9 "2021-04-08T22:39:45Z")
Not clearly great drama (tho the books are great fun!) but Jack Reacher is pretty famously homeless. Or IIRC for at least the earlier books. And Hiassen’s Skink is homeless. But in terms of “great drama”, the first and only character that came to mind was Magwitch in Great Expectations, and he’s not really the protagonist nor homeless throughout. And I’ve lately been reading Shakespeare. He’s got plenty of characters living in forests, caves, etc. Not sure if that counts. But even Lear gave up his kingdom and planned on spending his time between his 2 daughters’ homes, until they kicked him out and he ended up on the heath. Not sure drama gets much greater than Lear! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![DeathPool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e95f7d/32.png) [@DeathPool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeathPool)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/10 "2021-04-09T13:02:46Z")
I was going to say Hobo with a Shotgun, but then I forgot about the Drama, part, I would say it’s more of a Trauma. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/11 "2021-04-09T13:19:38Z")
I liked the Woody Harrelson movie _Defendor_, although it probably fails the “great drama” test. > **[Defendor (2009) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1303828/)** > > Defendor: Directed by Peter Stebbings. With Woody Harrelson, Elias Koteas, Michael Kelly, Sandra Oh. Arthur Poppington, a regular man who adopts a superhero persona, known as "Defendor", combs the city streets at night, in search of his archenemy,... (And I admit my first thought also went to _Hobo with a Shotgun_.) ---
**Author:** ![Chad\_Sudan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chad_sudan/32/4509_2.png) [@Chad\_Sudan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chad_Sudan)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/12 "2021-04-09T13:46:21Z")
Not “great,” perhaps, but well worth watching: > **[Wendy and Lucy (2008) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1152850/)** > > Wendy and Lucy: Directed by Kelly Reichardt. With Michelle Williams, Lucy, David Koppell, Max Clement. Over the summer, a series of unfortunate happening triggers a financial crisis for a young woman and she soon finds her life falling apart. ---
**Author:** ![MortSahlFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@MortSahlFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MortSahlFan)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/13 "2021-04-09T13:51:18Z")
Sign of the Leo ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/14 "2021-04-09T13:52:24Z")
Lady and the Tramp? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/15 "2021-04-09T14:43:37Z")
City Lights ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/16 "2021-04-09T14:56:19Z")
_First Blood_ (not sure I’d call it a great drama, but I thought it was a good movie). ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/17 "2021-04-09T16:02:48Z")
> **[The Pursuit of Happyness (2006) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0454921/)** > > The Pursuit of Happyness: Directed by Gabriele Muccino. With Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Thandiwe Newton, Brian Howe. A struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional career. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/18 "2021-04-09T17:55:12Z")
> **[Three Colours: White](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Colours:_White)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Three Colours: White (French: Trois couleurs: Blanc, Polish: Trzy kolory. Biały) is a 1994 comedy-drama film co-written, produced, and directed by Krzysztof Kieślowski. White is the second in the Three Colours trilogy, themed on the French Revolutionary ideals, following Blue and preceding Red. The film was selected as the Polish entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 67th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee. > White is about... ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/19 "2021-04-09T17:56:02Z")
_Nightmare Alley_ (1947) – His long con a failure, Tyrone Power eludes the law by becoming a homeless alcoholic bum before finding employment with a circus (“Anyway, it’s only temporary, just until we can get a real geek.”) _The Fugitive Kind_ (1960) – Certainly not a great drama, but Marlon Brando makes an iconic wandering stud. _Yojimbo_ (1961) and pretty much every other samurai movie ever made featuring _ronin_ (e.g., _Lone Wolf and Cub_). _The Tale of Zatoichi_ (1962) and all others in the series. _Fistful of Dollars_ (1964) and many a Spaghetti Western to follow. _Emperor of the North_ (1973) – Train hoboes vs. train conductor Ernest Borgnine. _They Live_ (1988) – Vagrant Roddy Piper uncovers alien plot. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621/20 "2021-04-09T18:04:12Z")
The series _Kung Fu_. If you are going to tell me it’s not great drama we are going to fight. In slow motion. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-dramas-w-homeless-protagonist/939621.md?page=2)