Perhaps I forgot some of the story details over the years, but watching it again recently has me wondering if I saw a different cut back in my college days. From doing a little research, I found that a new cut did come into existence around or just after I would have seen it in college because additional surviving footage was found. Specifically, the elements of the scientist creating his robot in order to destroy the city’s master, Fredersen, seemed new to me. If I recall correctly, in the version I saw in college Fredersen and the scientist worked together in order to crush Maria’s preaching to the underclass of workers.
If I did indeed see two unique cuts of the film, it speaks volumes to Fritz Lang and his crew that both are mesmerizing and equally great. I can’t even bring myself to make the argument that modern audiences might not think the special effects of Metropolis are a big deal, because I was captivated by them before I really began to understand and research film history.
Some viewers may have a hard time buying into the film’s hopelessly naïve ideal of unity between the working and ruling classes, and that is completely understandable. If you allow yourself to experience this film without reservations, however, you will be sucked in and feel like it is a triumph of the human spirit. It is, after all, a puff piece but it is packed with enough drama and action to keep you emotionally invested in the story and the characters.
Other viewers may be apprehensive of taking Metropolis in if they know of its history as a favorite film among Nazis, European socialists, and communists of pre-World War II Europe. I find this weirdly amusing because I see the film not as rich vs. poor but as party elite vs. their suppressed citizens. The upper class of Metropolis resembles almost exactly what society turns into under authoritarian socialist and communist rule. It makes you wonder if those Nazis and Soviets subconsciously longed for the unity at the ending or the division at the beginning of the film.
From a technical standpoint, Metropolis was a game changer. The inventiveness of some of the special effects is a testament to director Fritz Lang and his entire crew of filmmakers. The idealism of the story is worn boldly on Metropolis’s sleeve but I wouldn’t call it overly idealistic. Rather, it is idealism personified and committed to celluloid. For that, it is a powerful testament to the longing of the human spirit to be in balance and I respect that. It may not be as potently enjoyable as Gone with the Wind, but it comes darn close.
Original Rating: 4.75 out of 5
New Rating: 4.75 out of 5
No comments:
Post a Comment