The first thing that stuck out to me was the special effects because they were impressive for the time. The use of miniature cities used for the set was a recently new technique that the film perfected. It also used a camera on a swing. Many extravagant movies today use cameras on swings, or cranes. And it also used Schufftan Process, which used mirrors to create the illusion that actors are occupying miniature sets. This same process was later used by Alfred Hitchcock. The creation of the robot Hel, despite its blocky appearance, prefaces Gort from The Day the Earth Stood Still. The film was also edited well. The action and movement between scenes flowed, and was not forced; it felt natural. Musical fades along with actual fades were almost poetic. While other directors back then struggled to figure out film techniques, director Fritz Lang made it look like he had been doing it for years.
The film advanced special effects and editing, but it's narrative is what sold me. It is about an upper class man who realizes that while he enjoys life to the fullest, the people below him are suffering. The film speaks heavy themes about the haves and the have-nots. It shadowed the coming Great Depression. The movie is similar to an allegory for events in history. Similarities can be drawn between the rise of Communism in Russia, the French Revolution, and even the separation of classes America is dealing with today. It was a landmark in science fiction filmmaking. Audience today love it when there is dystopian society, a hero who revolts, and a revolution that follows. Modern day science-fiction movies, like The Hunger Games and Elysium, are still following Metropolis' basic plot.
For me, the film is everlasting. I am learning in my American Government course right now that the top 1% of the richest people in America own more than 60 percent of the nations wealth. Then I go watch Metropolis. A feeling rises in me. I suddenly want to change the world, and stand up for the little guy. Plus, I love super-heroes, fighting for people's rights, so that just adds fuel to my fire to fight injustice. The words "the mediator between the head and the hands must be the heart," is something politicians and common voters should remember today because despite our difference, we live under the same flag. But to me, the words are more personal than that; my head tells me all the things I can do, my hands tell me what I want to do, but my hearts tells me what I should do.
Everyone can learn from the film. Teachers are still showing it to aspiring film students today. It created the blockbuster film, but it can still entertain and inspire people after 86 years. It is a classic. In spite of a completely silent narrative, Metropolis speaks louder than many other movies that came after it.
