Movie Review: Metropolis (1927)

Metropolis (1927) co-written and directed by Fritz Lang

This science fiction classic of the silent era is superficially about the conflict between the working class people and those in high society. The real theme is creating unity between the two, which is admittedly difficult to do. As the movie says, "The mediator between head and hands must be the heart." In the titular city, the upper class lives a life of luxury and ease. The city is a gleaming utopia with tall buildings, swanky night clubs, comfortable homes, and all forms of transit from walking to airplanes. Any pleasure they want is there for the taking. Joh Fredersen (Alfred Abel) is the city's architect, i.e. the head. His son, Freder (Gustav Frohlich), enjoys his life above but is concerned about the people, i.e. the hands, who built the city. He goes in search of those people. He goes to the subterranean part of the city and takes over for Worker 11811, working a ten-hour shift at an inhuman task on a large, incomprehensible machine. Freder meets Maria (Brigitte Helm), a teacher in the lower city. She also leads meetings of the workers where she inspires them to wait for a mediator to improve their situation. The crowds are restless but hopeful thanks to her kind words and deeds. They consider her a saint. Freder falls in love with her and realizes that he might be the mediator that they need. Unfortunately, his father witnesses the meeting and hatches a plan with a mad scientist named Rotwang (Rudolf Klein-Rogge). Rotwang has invented a Machine-Man that he can make look like any person he wishes. Joh Fredersen tells him to make it like Maria so Joh can use it to discredit Maria among the people. Lots of trouble follows.

The movie is visually amazing, following the Expressionistic style that Lang often uses. The scenes of life above and below are both cavernous and detailed, richly painting the society in which they live, often exaggerating or drawing less than obvious parallels (like when one machine fades into a monstrous face consuming the workers). I like the creativity and the over-the-top feel the style gives. The special effects are impressive. At one point, Maria retells the story of the Tower of Babel which is presented visually and narratively as a parallel to what goes on in this movie. The ancient slaves building the tower have the same movements and mass as Metropolis's working class. The tower's designers are so aloof that eventually they can't even communicate with the workers and the project fails. The parallels are smartly drawn and give a sense of foreboding to the narrative. The False Maria is quite alluring and does as much to lead the upper class astray as she does the lower class (Rotwang has an ulterior motive that puts him secretly against Fredersen). She performs at a nightclub (almost nude) and stirs up a lot of sin among the male customers. 

The main theme is a refreshing break from the usual "poor good, rich bad" social theories typically presented in movies. The two sets of people need to find a genuine common ground where the responsibilities of both are respected. The solution isn't the brute force of the hands or the cold cunning of the head. Senseless, irrational hands bring about a lot of destruction, even self-destruction in the film. A head without work turns to selfishness and self-pleasure at the cost of others. Only the heart, the love for others, can stop both the conflict and the self-harm. It's an ideal that both the rich and the poor (i.e. all of us) too often fall short of.

Highly recommended. I watched the Kino Lorber Complete Metropolis that has a lot of restored footage and an excellent musical score.

The movie is discussed on A Good Story is Hard to Find Podcast #278, check it out!