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Oct 19, 2010 · We will look at the underlying occult message of the film and the usage of its imagery in the acts of pop stars such as Lady Gaga, Madonna, Beyonce, Kylie Minogue and others. Metropolis is a silent science-fiction movie released in 1927 by Fritz Lang, a master of German Expressionism.
Metropolis is a 1927 German expressionist science-fiction silent film directed by Fritz Lang and written by Thea von Harbou in collaboration with Lang from von Harbou's 1925 novel of the same name (which was intentionally written as a treatment). It stars Gustav Fröhlich, Alfred Abel, Rudolf Klein-Rogge, and Brigitte Helm.
Sep 8, 2015 · We will see these robotic labor gangs again, not only in the futuristic city of Metropolis, but in ancient Mesopotamia, at the dawn of history. Fritz Lang then moves from the “satanic mills” of the poor, to use Blake’s term, to the pleasure palaces of the rich.
Mar 28, 1998 · The ideas of “Metropolis” have been so often absorbed into popular culture that its horrific future city is almost a given (when Albert Brooks dared to create an alternative utopian future in 1991 with “Defending Your Life,” it seemed wrong, somehow, without Satanic urban hellscapes). Lang filmed for nearly a year, driven by obsession ...
- Overview
- Production notes and credits
- Cast
Metropolis, German silent film, released in 1927, featuring director Fritz Lang’s vision of a grim futuristic society and containing some of the most impressive images in film history.
(Read Lillian Gish’s 1929 Britannica essay on silent film.)
Britannica Quiz
Pop Culture Quiz
The great future city of Metropolis in the film is inhabited by two distinct classes: the industrialists live off the fat of the land, supported by the workers who live under the city and endure a bare-bones existence of backbreaking work. The story concerns a forbidden love between Freder (played by Gustav Fröhlich), a young man from the industrialist class, and Maria (Brigitte Helm), an activist who preaches against the divide between the two classes. The subterfuge and deceit involving a robot duplicate of Maria culminate in a revolution that quickly spells disaster for all involved.
Despite advances in filmmaking technology, no other film has surpassed Metropolis in terms of its impact on production design. Its influence can be seen in many subsequent science fiction films, including Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner (1982) and Terry Gilliam’s Brazil (1985). Lang’s eye for magnificent set pieces and special effects resulted in memorable images, notably the immense skyscrapers that dominate the skyline of Metropolis and the scenes in which the robot takes on Maria’s features.
•Studio: Universum Film AG (UFA)
•Director: Fritz Lang
•Producer: Erich Pommer
•Writers: Fritz Lang and Thea von Harbou
•Brigitte Helm (Maria/The Robot)
•Gustav Fröhlich (Freder)
•Alfred Abel (Joh Fredersen)
•Rudolf Klein-Rogge (Rotwang)
- Lee Pfeiffer
Jan 6, 2003 · Lang calls these forces the "head and the hands," and the binding force of Freder, he calls "heart." The parallel between these forces and the tenets of Christian theology is impossible to ignore. I do not want to suggest that Lang intended Metropolis as a religious allegory; that is not the point at all. Rather, Lang understood the power of ...
Mar 25, 2024 · Metropolis ’s towering imagery has left its imprint, and yet this does nothing to diminish the distinctive power that it holds. Part of the visual signature of the film, and in my opinion, one of the most striking and unusual (to modern eyes) aspects, is in the stylised way its actors move. I often felt like I was watching a dance.
