Metropolis

Starring: Brigitte Helm, Alfred Abel, Gustav Frohlich, Rudolph Klein-Rogge, Fritz Rasp, Theodor Loos
Directed by: Fritz Lang
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Drama, Science Fiction
1927

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: In a divided future society, the city leader's son (Gustav Frohlich) falls in love with a prophet (Brigitte Helm) who threatens to inspire the masses to rise up against their government overlord.

Review:

Tim: What can you say about Fritz Lang's Metropolis? It's undoubtedly one of the most influential movies of all time. It was one of the pioneering science fiction films, an epic film, one of the all-time great silent movies. The visuals were stunning and revolutionary, the story inspirational and prophetic. Lang created an absolute masterpiece with this film. It's a tremendous movie and it holds up nearly 100 years later.

I was so impressed by how Lang created this futuristic, dystopian society. The visuals are nearly beyond belief- the scope of the sets, the costumes, the visual effects- Lang combines all these in a way that was many years before the rest of the filmmaking world would catch up. I felt riveted throughout much of the film, sucked into this futuristic society. I can't even imagine how audiences in 1927 would have felt watching this film. Of all the movies I've seen from the 1920s and 1930s, there's nothing else that comes remotely close to this immersive visual experience. Even many decades later, I marveled at what Lang was able to create. This shows up in so many different ways- the visuals of the city itself are so impressive, giving a sense of grandeur and scope. The internal mechanisms were fascinating, too. I can still see scene where Freder steps in for the worker who collapsed. The monotony, the unending, seemingly pointless effort of aligning the arrows was so prophetic for what the world would become. That scene is simply stunning to behold.

I also have to bow down in awe of Lang's depiction of the humanoid robot. This machine person offers the most memorable, chilling visual of the entire film. The design was simply outstanding- it gives you a true sense of the uncanny valley, and audiences at the time had to have been chilled by this depiction. I felt that way and robots are much more commonplace than they were in 1927 (although we don't have humanoid robots walking around yet). The look and feel, the movements of that machine person were incredible and influential.

I really loved the story, too. The future depicted here isn't one of a new Garden of Eden (although the rich elite certainly have that). The story shows that even in a futuristic setting, there are the haves and the have nots. The wealthy elite live in paradise, while the working poor suffer down below. That perfectly sums up so much of human history and sadly, it is still very true today. That was a powerful message about greed and humanity and it hits powerfully home watching this film.

The acting is always interesting in silent movies because without sound, it required more theatrical, over-the-top performances to get the message across. I liked Gustav Frohlich in the lead role. He was relatable enough that we could easily root for him. Brigitte Helm was excellent in her role- she plays it so well and it required a more extensive range from her. She was definitely one of the highlights of the film. Alfred Abel was sufficiently stoic and elitist. Rudolph Klein-Rogge gave an energetic and memorable performance, toeing the line between brilliance and madness. The cast all worked well, although they weren't the standouts here. They gave good enough performances to bring humanity to Lang's film, which is exactly what they needed to do.

The scope of the film is impressive- it definitely comes across as an epic science fiction film. I think the movie was probably a bit too long- 2 hours and 33 minutes is a massive achievement in 1927, but there are places it could have been cut. I will say that I felt like the movie rarely dragged- I was invested from beginning to end.

Metropolis is certainly a landmark motion picture, one of the all-time German classics. It is enormously influential to so many films and entertainment that came after it. I loved the movie and there's just no doubt what a critical, visionary film Lang created. Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8



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