The story of what happened to the film is almost as dramatic as the story told by the film itself. Soon after its premiere in 1927, METROPOLIS was severely truncated and altered. Since then, more than a quarter of the film was believed to have been lost forever. Then in 2008, over 80 years since its original release, a virtually complete version of the film was discovered in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Using this material, a considerable amount of the film reconstruction was completed and the correct sequence of its editing was established to closely resemble director Fritz Lang's original vision. This review is written based on the fully reconstructed and restored version of the film in the Blu-ray format.
METROPOLIS portrays a futuristic city owned by an entrepreneur called Joh Fredersen (Alfred Abel), where the rich live in a splendid city with wonderful architectures, skyscrapers and superhighways, and happily spend their time in night clubs, theatres and stadiums. Forgotten in the depths beneath the earth is the City of the Workers, where people do never-ending shifts of repetitive work to keep the 'heart machine' of the city running. When Fredersen's son Freder (Gustav Fröhlich) meets a strange woman Maria (Brigitte Helm), he is immediately attracted to her.
As Freder sets out to look for Maria, he discovers the world beneath and sees all that happens there. He becomes determined to be the mediator (the heart) that connects his father (the head) with the workers (the hands). Meanwhile, a mad scientist Rotwang (Rudolf Kleine-Rogge) has almost completed his creation of a machine-human that he intends to use to destroy Joh Fredersen and his world.
The film is a visual extravaganza. The production design is top-notch, with the city meticulously created using sets, models and paintings. The visual effects, without doubt amazing for its time, remain mostly enjoyable and at times spectacular even in this age of CGI graphics. It is important to point that while much of the film looks crisp and clear, what had been preserved in the newly discovered copy was seriously damaged, and so the new footages look heavily scratched even after restoration. Despite this, the extra scenes add so much to the film's narrative and meaning that one just has to accept the poorer-quality footages in order to fully appreciate the film. The film also sounds great, with its marvellous orchestral score complementing the visuals wonderfully and adding a great deal to the film's power.
METROPOLIS touches on an incredible number of different themes, such as class struggle, social inequality, technology, science and religion. The conflicts between the people and their ruler are familiar scenes if you look at world history. The ever increasing division between the rich and the poor is seen in many societies of the world today. The very important cautionary note about over-relying on technology and the potentials for science to be abused for selfish or evil motives comes through strongly. There are also plenty of Biblical references, such as the story of the 'New Tower of Babel', the two parts of the world - above (heaven) and below (hell), and the prophecy of the coming of the mediator.
By today's standards, the performances by the actors and actresses in METROPOLIS, with their exaggerated facial gestures and body languages, can be considered over the top. However, the apparent overacting actually appears to fit the crazy world portrayed by the film rather well.
Next year will mark the 85th anniversary of the release of METROPOLIS, and it is astonishing to see how much of the film is still relevant to today's society. This lasting relevance, together with the intriguing story, technical wonders and monumental scope, make METROPOLIS a seminal cinematic masterpiece and a truly 'must-see' film for all movie lovers.
METROPOLIS is distributed in Oz by Madman Entertainment, Australia's leading distributor of anime, independent film, Asian cinema, National Geographic, Cartoon Network and other special interest genres.
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