
Oleh Dini Febriani
Title: Metropolis
Year: 1927
Genre: Drama, Science Fiction
Director: Fritz Lang
Screenwriter: Thea von Harbou
Cast: Gustav Fröhlich, Brigitte Helm, Alfred Abel, Rudolf Klein-Rogge, Heinrich George, Theodor Loos, Erwin Biswanger
Language: German
IMDb Rating: 8.3
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 99%

The legendary quote from Metropolis.
Metropolis tells about a very well-built advanced industrial city in 2026 ruled by a wealthy creator, Joh Fredersen, with its luxury and prosperity: skyscrapers, sophisticated transports with aircrafts drifting around and electric trains running along very high flyovers, and other modern public facilities including lecture halls, libraries, stadiums, and theatres. In spite of its magnificence, deep beneath the city, the true builders of Metropolis live in slavery: a group of workers operating machines that supply the power of the city.

The city of Metropolis.

The workers living in the depth of Metropolis.

Maria: “Seht! Das sind Eure Brűder!”

Freder stopping her father’s former assistant, Josapath, from committing suicide.
Discovering the same occurrence, Fredersen and Rotwang plan on ruining Maria’s reputation towards the workers by utilising the Man-Machine, a female robot created by Rotwang, as her counterfeit. Fredersen who seeks an excuse to ‘punish’ his workers does not cognise that Rotwang is on his way to take revenge on him at the same time.

The Man-Machine created as the resurrection of Hel. She looks like C-3PO, huh? And who on Earth is Hel?
Gosh, I do not want to put on any spoilers to those who have not seen this film, but I have got to tell you: provocation is such a gun. And sadly, the workers of Metropolis pull the trigger. As Rotwang successfully transfers the physical likeness of Maria to the Man-Machine, chaos comes to pass. This false Maria goes to the catacombs to gather the workers and arouse their long desire to revolt. The wrathful workers then invite their wives to come with them to destroy the Heart Machine, causing the burst of a reservoir in the depth, which then floods the entire The City of Workers. Grot, who previously tries to stop them, enquires where their children are, whom certainly they leave behind in their houses.

Children trying to save themselves from the flood.

Meanwhile, their parents…

The statues representing death and The Seven Deadly Sins. So cool. The skeleton is rad as hell.
Fritz Lang, Thea von Harbou (his wife), and the cinematographers are geniuses! If you are not into silent films, it will be kind of hard at first, but I promise Metropolis will not let you be in the tedium for any much longer. Also, do not raise your eyebrows as the way the actors act is not much like the one today’s actors you see act—Brigitte Helm, I love her! She portrays both the ‘saint’ Maria and the false Maria who ‘commits’ The Seven Deadly Sins wondrously. Above all, um, I can guarantee that you will like this film![*]
P.S. *That is not a quote from this film, though, it is sort of much like from me.
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