Metropolis
(Fritz Lang, 1927)
IMDB

Metropolis is the futuristic story of a working and upper class divide. It houses the classic tale of an upper class man, Freder Frederson, who falls in love with a working class woman, the preacher, Maria.

Set somewhere in the future, Metropolis truly is a masterpiece of visual forsight, with sets of Chicago skyscrapers, when actually skyscrapers didn't appear until at least 30 years after the film's release. With visions of modern travel too- Monorail, trains, planes, all envisaged in this 1927, sci-fi that has influenced so many other films since. The film begs the question; how could the director have had such a vision of a future, that to a 2011 audience, is so actual and current?

The narrative is predictable now, however to a 1927 audience, it would have been innovative and exciting. At times the film seems a little fragmented but this is due to the fact that physically, some parts of the film were lost to the deterioration of celluloid. The film's look is very industrial and advanced, mixing imagery of neon-illuminated skyscrapers and flashing signs with imagery of whirring cogs and steaming pipes. The set makes use of a lot of strong forms; very linear buildings, especially within the working-class area and more adventurous designs within the cityscape, exploring curvature and much less the use of the straight line.

The music is very dominating, menacing at times. It works very well with the very much “German” imagery of the regimented workers in linear formation, and definitely heightens the sense of the looming “below”, where the workers spend their gruelling shifts. Contrast between light and dark is very widely used throughout the film, often adding an almost film-noir aspect to the film; a single light shining upon the desperate woman as the elongated shadow of a madman nears.

In keeping with it's futuristic and visionary theme, the film even explores the possibilities of robotics, making this then, the textbook for all sci-fi films that would follow it's 1927 release. All of the sub-categories explored in Metropolis can be found countless times over in films from the same genre. Personally, I was surprised with the complexity of the editing in this film. At times there are several images all super imposed and layered together and, during a scene demonstrating Freder's delirium following illness, the pace of the cuts between imagery is remarkable! It's very successful in creating a menacing and almost disturbing tone, using the fast pace to highlight the uprising of Maria's (The Machine Man's) hysteria and overwhelming control over the sheep of society.

In the scenes in which Brigitte Helm plays her main character's double, known as The Machine Man, I find her acting really quite disturbing; her movement very disjointed and unnatural. I was initially wary of Metropolis, but ultimately I enjoyed it, it's interesting to see how so many films since this have drawn influence from it, whether that be through editing or actual content. I understand that although I've seen a similar storyline so many times before this, Metropolis, in it's day, was truly innovative and Lang was very much ahead of his time in terms of narrative and content.