Film Review: Metropolis

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“More than perhaps any director since Georges Méliès, Lang dared to imagine that he could film absolutely anything he could conceive, and so radically expanded the possibilities for every filmmaker to follow. There is no denying that eight decades of increasingly fantastic vision and invention begin with Metropolis.” (The Unaffiliated Critic, February 8, 2013)

After a dynamic dissolve sequence show-casing pumps, machine wheels and ticking clocks that puts us straight away in a buzzing atmosphere, Fritz Lang’s Metropolis (1927) opens up with our two main characters: the workers of the Depths and the citizens of Metropolis. Their differences in lifestyle and conditions are immediately hinted by the aesthetic of their respective environments, costumes and acting. The working class first appears during a shift sequence, where they walk under the oppressive arch of a tunnel artificially lit. All perfectly aligned, their mechanical, choreographed movements hold a clear meaning: the workers, feeling washed out and unable to think, behave like pieces of machinery. Their dull, grey outfits take away any form of individuality, which makes the fresh faction no more different that the one who just came back from the depths. With this bold introduction, Fritz Lang manages to push the archetype of the industrial, lower classes of at its fullest.

In contrast, we meet the upper class of Metropolis in a large, sun lit stadium, all wearing pale pieces of clothing. In a carefree sort of fashion, they seem to give themselves to life’s simple pleasures, frolicking in the stylised nature of the Eternal Gardens. The place, wonderful re-invention of Eden’s garden, displays extravagant vegetation that echoes the outfits of its residents, oblivious or unaware of the workers down below.

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The two worlds meet when Maria, a girl stemming from the working class, bursts through the Art Déco inspired gate of the Gardens and she and the protagonist, son of the city’s mayor, intensely stare into each other eyes. This is a key moment for Maria’s characterization as a messenger of peace, as a close-up shows her face bathed in a holy sort of light, children clinging at her arms.

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Facing her, our main character, Freder, starts letting his emotive acting take over to emphasize his nascent love and later on, the fact that he is the 'Heart' of Maria’s prophecy. In order to catch up with the young maid, the son of the city’s most powerful man embarks on a Siddhartha Gautama kind of journey where he discovers the truth behind Metropolis’ magnificent façade.
References to Christianity and other religions seem to drive a lot of artistic decisions in the movie. When Freder descends into the Depths, one can easily draw parallels between the smoke-packed machine rooms where operatives, moving like the clock ticking away their time, work themselves to death and the traditional depiction of Hell with its souls suffering countless pains. The metaphor goes further when a machine is visually replaced by the sculpture of a pagan deity devouring slaves, introduced by an alarming and irregular intertitle. In the mid-confusion of Freder’s panic, the sculpture and the machine are being merged together and actual workmen, rapidly replaced to show their interchangeability, are being thrown into the monster’s mouth.
To carry on with the religious allusions, Metropolis itself could be compared to a modern, Eden-like paradise, exhibited in all its glory through a dazzling series of shots featuring Art Déco skyscrapers, elevated highways, and culminating to Joh Frederson’s new Tower of Babel. Even the typography of its name, at the beginning of the film, inspires harmony with its symmetrical and diagonal lines, just like the city was thought and designed. In comparison, the workers’ residences feel drastically utilitarian, with their plain vertical shapes balanced here and there by oblique shadows and lines. Both this austere industrial underground and the futuristic urban landscape above are tied together by gothic elements of Christian tradition – familiar ground for contemporary viewers – from their roots with the catacombs to the surface with the cathedral and its 7 deadly sins.

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Although creating effective compositions (figure 5.), these incredible sets are not only there to provide visual support to the narratives. At one point in the movie, they actively take part in the story, as the machines explode and the workers city crumbles under a flood. This leads us to spectacular destruction scenes and to an apocalyptic power failure in Metropolis that allow the Head and the Hand to start anew at the end of the film.

David Bordwell remarks: “Lang has now perfected his breathless version of silent-film narration. He relies on simple, immediately graspable compositions, rapid crosscutting among different plotlines, and a dynamic approach to analytical editing.” (David Bordwell, April 5, 2010). On top of using refined montage techniques, Lang’s masterpiece also shows major advances in lighting and camera angles. One important thing to notice about the camera work in Metropolis is its understanding of the first person. Most of the time, the viewer is not treated as an audience like earlier films static mise-en-scène used to imply. We actually get to see through the eyes of a character, this effect being most memorable in the scene where Rotwang is chasing Maria (figure 7.).

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Another aspect that makes the movie visually stands out is the acting department. The lead actress, Brigitte Helm, even had to pull two different performances (three if we include the original Maschinenmensch) to make very opposite characters feel like they share the same physical features. Whilst Maria is always portrayed as a peaceful figure illuminated like a madonna, her destructive, artificial counterpart is recognizable by the constant dissymmetry and nervousness of its puppet-like movements, her twitching eyes darkened with makeup (figure 8.). We can further notice that, in silent productions, body language is the key to define a character and the metaphorical idea they represent. For example, Joh Fredersen is meant to symbolize the ‘Head’, notion that can be read through his stiff positions and thoughtful, imperious attitude. Likewise, tortuous mind is represented in Rotwang with the help of wild gestures, mad grins and haunted expressions. In a same vein, the sinister character of the Thin Man appears to be influenced on some level by the creepy, omniscient nature of Nosferatu’s body language.      

Fritz Lang also considers crowds as a character and stages their flow accordingly, with the intention of portraying an emotion: columns of slaves converging like the fingers of a hand, human tide of bodies crushed under the weight of their load, swirling collage of eyes wide-open, children hands stretching desperately towards their saviours, mass of mesmerized workers leaning closer to hear Maria’s speeches, they all carry a particular idea. Towards the end, however, the concept of this entity-like multitude vanishes slowly: “When the workers riot, they move more individually, and the moment when the rioting workers meet the partying upper-class foreshadows the handshake at the end of the film. The mass is made up of individuals […]” (Jane Oswald, date unknown)

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With its sinisterly beautiful android, ambitious mad scientist, humans vs machines struggle and visionary depiction of tomorrow’s city, it is not surprising Metropolis still hugely influences many cinematographic conventions and genres, from sci-fi to horror movies, as Roger Ebert observes: “Lang created one of the unforgettable original places in the cinema. Metropolis fixed for countless later films the image of a futuristic city as a hell of material progress and human despair.” (Roger Ebert, June 2, 2010)

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Biblioghraphy

The Unaffiliated Critic. (February 8, 2013) Metropolis (1927) Review At: http://unaffiliatedcritic.com/2013/02/metropolis-1927-independent-study-in-world-cinema/ (Accessed on 28/10/14)

Bordwell, David. (April 5, 2010) METROPOLIS unbound
At: http://www.davidbordwell.net/blog/2010/04/05/metropolis-unbound/ (Accessed on 27/10/14)

Oswald, Jane. (Unknown date) Metropolis: an essay by Jane Oswald. At: http://www.netcomuk.co.uk/~media/Metrop.html (Accessed on 27/10/14)

Ebert, Roger. (June 2, 2010) Great Movie: Metropolis 2010 Restauration. At: http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-metropolis-2010-restoration-1927 (Accessed on 27/10/14)

Illustration List

Figure 1. Metropolis (1927)  [Poster] At: https://www.studyblue.com/notes/note/n/chapter-14-pictorial-modernism-images/deck/1194256 (Accessed on 28/10/14)

Figure 2. Eternal Gardens Still 1. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: http://www.kindranikolephotography.com/journal/dreamscapes/ (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 3. Eternal Gardens Still 2. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: http://movieclassics3326.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/metropolis.html (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 4. Maria First Apparition Still. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: https://janeaustenrunsmylife.wordpress.com/2014/07/14/ (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 5. Catacombs Still. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: http://cboye.wordpress.com/2010/12/05/review-metropolis/ (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 6. Leader Robot Maria Still. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: http://www.gpforums.co.nz/threads/413035-Film-of-the-Week-Metropolis (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 7. Rotwang Chasing Maria Still. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: http://unaffiliatedcritic.com/2013/02/metropolis-1927-independent-study-in-world-cinema/ (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 8. Anti-Maria Still. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr9zK2kYPylmVYBrFo6tQXI2sFCW1vlfmDUKvOrcctqrtddBKWTHgfHcirBWVCHUXH2oC4JblzjR97cDaORku_SyfD8qjUwO5LbUMpJUPM5MIH-ZGNUzeLMoN7Wk1Qemu1F8GwkLMjJZub/s1600/Brigitte+Helm+-+Metropolis+(1927)+mad+Maria+2.jpg  (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 9. Eyes Still. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: http://www.davidbordwell.net/blog/2010/04/05/metropolis-unbound/ (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 10. Sons’ Eyes Still. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: http://mumbyatthemovies.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/review-revisited-metropolis-1927.html (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 11. Babylon Whore Still. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2010/jun/22/metropolis-enlarged/ (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 12. Gong Still. (1920) From: Metropolis. Directed by: Lang, F. [Film still] Germany (Weimar Republic): UFA. At: http://theendofbeing.com/2010/06/08/fritz-langs-complete-metroplis-film-review/ (Accessed on 28/10/14).

Figure 13. Metropolis (1927) Designer: Bilinsky, B.  [Poster] At: https://mubi.com/notebook/posts/movie-poster-of-the-week-metropolis-and-the-posters-of-boris-bilinsky (Accessed on 28/10/14)