Metropolis is a German film directed by Fritz Lang, this expressionist movie is set in a futuristic urban dystopia where the wealthy live in a futuristic city while the working class work in a dark underground like location. The movie follows Maria who's considered a saintly figure to the workers and also follows Freder the son of the city owner who together try to unite the two classes together. The plot then gets confusing where Maria is kidnapped by Rotwang (a mad scientist) and her likeness is transferred to a robot which is then sent out to destroy Maria reputation so that the workers don't try to rebel... there's a lot more to it but that's the main point of the plot. The false Maria instead convinces the workers to destroy the machine seen in the workers location (shown below looks like the guy changing the time on a clock) which then floods the workplace.... after all the deception is figured out and 153 minutes of my life disappearing, the real Maria achieves her goal where the two classes join together and everyone live happily ever after.
The plot is incredibly long and drawn out but the visuals of this movie has influenced modern cinema a lot more than you would expect take a look below.
The plot is incredibly long and drawn out but the visuals of this movie has influenced modern cinema a lot more than you would expect take a look below.
Metropolis inspired such a variety of media including comic books, TV and film. Many characters are designed with elements of metropolis seeping through. Some examples of this are Batman, Blade Runner, Dark City and even Doctor Who “What many of these movies have in common is a loner hero who discovers the inner workings of the future society, penetrating the system that would control the population. Even Batman's villains are the descendants of Rotwang, giggling as they pull the levels that will enforce their will” (Ebert, 1998). Batman and The Doctor are both considered lone heroes, trying to protect a civilisation from harm. The Bat cave and many villains lairs from 1980’s Batman contain similar machine designs to Rotwangs Lab. Rotwangs robot “Hel” has inspired many robot characters from newer franchises like the Cybermen from Doctor Who and C3PO from Star Wars. Even Rotwang himself is seen as a classic mad scientist template for other films, like Emmet Brown from Back to the future and in the Bride of Frankenstein.
Here are some examples:
The Mad Scientist
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| Rotwang from Metropolis (1927) |
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| Doc showing the classic mad scientist look from Back to the Future |
The Robots with "Upgrades" |
| Robot from Metropolis who's mind was transferred from Human Maria |
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The Robot Design
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| Robot from Metropolis |
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| C3PO |
Metropolis contains themes of human struggle and religion, the pampered
citizens who live in luxury, oblivious to the lower class working 10 hour
shifts to keep the machine running in the depths. “Maria longs for a messianic
figure who can find a middle way between the head and the heart, the bosses and
the workers: he will be the Mediator” ( Bradshaw, 2010). Maria who is mentioned
in the quote wants to unite the bosses and workers together, she preaches to
the workers in the catacombs where she stands in front of some crosses which
are linked to Christianity.
“With its immense sets and stark lighting, the workers' city is a
credible image of hell, while the overground landscapes were a seminal
influence on all subsequent science fiction” (Pierce, 2003) As this quote
describes the workers city could be seen as a living hell and the over ground
city is built in a futuristic, Art Deco style. The buildings are very straight
edged and clean which is completely opposite to the sets in The Cabinet of Dr
Caligari.
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