Metropolis [1927]

Name: Metropolis

Type: Silent Movie / dystopian sci-fi

Interesting take on a dystopian society where the elites live above in the sky in a city that is powered by the ‘workers’ that toil in the city below.  The son of the rich people’s leader sees a woman trying to organize the workers for better lives and falls instantly in love (as you do). His dad has a best bud ‘ Rotwang ‘(the prototypical evil mad scientist) who has made a robot that can assume human form. The dad asks Rotty to make the robot in the form of the woman trying to organize the workers to incite a rebellion he can then quash them entirely. Little does dad know that Rotwang secretly has beef with him because his one love Hela chose him over Rotwang so he wants revenge! He knows the woman is in love with his rival’s son and plots to destroy them both with his robot girl!

So he make the robot girl into the whore of Babylon.. Who dances (quite lasciviously for the 1920’s) and drives all the rich boys crazy (some 7 deadly sins allegories sprinkled in here) and then incites the workers to open rebellion. The revolting workers break ‘the heart’ machine which for some reason causes unchecked flooding? Anyways the real Maria arrives to rescue the kids from the flood while their parents are on a riot rampage (hey, did we forget to hire a babysitter?).

The workers are angry all their kids are done for, so they blame Maria and burn her at the stake.. But NOT it’s not Maria! It’s the robot lady! But where’s Maria? Oh she’s being clumsily chased by a cartoonishly evil Rotwang who really needs to work on his cardio. Then there’s a roof fight and some hero falling and getting back up  tropes (wait, if it is the original movie to do it, is it a trope?) they fight on the rooftop and Rotwang falls to his doom.

Boy get girl – father learns lessons and.. Cut to the fin title card.

3/5 – The special effects for it being 1927 were pretty amazing and innovative and the acting was very local theater production but I understand that’s just how things were done at that time since theater was the prevalent entertainment medium while movies were the new hotness. Overall as one of the first science fiction dystopia movies (one of my favorite genres) I appreciate how it sets a standard that you see repeated in a lot of movies even almost 100 years later.