Customer Reviews

The Complete Metropolis [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This new 147-minute version includes an extra 25 minutes of footage, previously thought lost.
The film benefits from being remastered in 1080p and has a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack.
Extras include a 50-minute documentary on the making and restoration of the film and an interview with Paula Felix-Didier who is the curator of Museo del Cine, Buenos Aires, where the missing footage was discovered in 2008.
The restoration took a year and returns the film to the original release version seen by German cinema-goers in 1927.
This release comes in a Limited Edition Collectible 3-D Lenticuar Box Packaging.

A few years back, Kino released a DVD of a restored version of "Metropolis", taken mostly from camera negatives. The image quality was outstanding -- sometimes even superlative, as if the film had been shot yesterday. Unfortunately, large chunks remained in limbo, and the plot -- such as it was -- still didn't make much sense. Nevertheless, that version was warmly welcomed, as most public domain editions looked as if they'd been buried in a manure pile before being run over by a dozen Panzer divisions.

Since then, a 16mm reduction of the complete film was found in Argentina. Though horribly scratched (the transfer from 35mm was botched), we now have the complete film (except for two brief and unimportant scenes that had deteriorated beyond recovery). Even more important, a "censor's copy" of the complete intertitles was found. The latter (along with the manuscript of the film score) allowed the scenes to be correctly ordered, /and/ with the proper titles. The characters' motivations are now clear, and the story finally makes sense.

Up to a point, of course. If one can accept sentient androids, one might accept Rotwang putting synthetic skin on the False Maria. And then there's the problem of the Heart Machine stopping and the subsequent inundation of the underground city. True, such a city would need continual pumping to keep out the water. But it doesn't just /leak/ back in -- it positively explodes.

Regardless, "Metropolis" is now a genuinely entertaining film that holds one's attention from beginning to end. It has a number of iconic scenes -- most notably the "machine as Moloch" devouring its human "children", and Rotwang bringing the robot Maria "to life". Whether "Metropolis" is a "good" movie (in the absolute artistic sense) is beside the point. It's an influential classic, and anyone who loves movies should see "Metropolis" at least once.

For years I have admired but not really liked this film. I think it is because there was no real "complete" version available. I thought Georgio Moroder deserved an "A" for effort (and a D- for his score) in putting together a longer version in the 80's, and Kino certainly deserves that grade for the most complete version that they put on video earlier in this decade. However, because about 30-40 minutes was still missing, it still was not a true masterpiece to me; a classic, yes, but not a masterpiece.

When I heard about an almost complete version discovered in South America, I was very intrigued. but when I saw this version at the TCM Festival last spring, I was blown away by the power of the film and it finally made sense with so many little bits restored to the film. We are still missing a few minutes, but with the exception of Joh Fredersen and Rotwang having a good, old-fashioned fight, whatever is still missing can be lived with.

This is an astounding film, and Kino's HD transfer is remarkable, to say the least. Image clarity ranks with their gorgeous copy of THE GENERAL, and even the battered found footage has been cleaned up enough to not take you out of the film when it appears. I wish the Alloy Orchestra score that I heard live was on this disc, but the Huppertz score is still quite good. If you are a classic film fan but still have a reluctant feeling towards silent films, this will make you a convert.

Bravo to Kino!

I saw this film more than 30 years ago, and it did not make much sense to me. Beyond the spectacular visual effects, the motivations of the head man and the crazy inventor simply didn't add up in a fundamental way. With the new footage - a full 25% of the new version - it comes together to a much more coherent conclusion, so that the viewer can participate in a fantastic and complex historical document that also works as a story today.

In terms of the immediate film experience (i.e. not the historical interest), this film is a wonderful examination of the future of the industrial city. On one side, you find the managers and elite, who control the city with a tayloresque precision in statistics, processes, and space. The elite (or brain or head) reserves for itself the best spaces and activities. There is a wonderful, re-added sequence of a race between highly trained athletes, whose beautiful bodies are compared to huge statues in a stadium. Indulging himself in unprecedented riches, the son of the leader (or dictator or CEO) of the city plays sensual games all day in an artificial garden. On the other hand, you have the proletariat, who work the massive underground machines and live in the bowels of the city, exhausted and downtrodden but cared for in a certain way. They are the "hand".

The elite boy has a life-altering encounter with a young visionary from the underground, who is preaching an overtly christian message of brotherhood. He goes in search of her, discovering the underside of his father's empire and deems himself to be the mediator (or "heart") that the beautiful young visionary foresees as the salvation and who will change the balance of the Metropolis. To head off what he sees as a threat to his order, the father allies himself with a fabulous inventor, who is going mad. They develop a plan to discredit the young visionary. The recovered footage shows that the inventor and CEO were rivals for the love of the same woman, Hel, whose death split them apart and made the inventor a hidden enemy because of his insane jealousy. Hel was completely missing from the version released in the US and is the keystone to the entire plot. Needless to say, the son (Hel was his mother) joins with the girl to realize her vision of a new and more just harmony. While melodramatic as was the style of silent films, this story is wonderfully moving and thought-provoking with symbolism of both marxism and christianity but also industrial capitalism.

In an historical sense, the film is an absolute must-see for any film buff or sci-fi enthusiast. The scenario is probably the most influential of any futuristic vision in the history of cinema. Not only is there a vision of cities to come that many urban planners acknowledge as an inspiration to them, but countless later films were inspired by its imagery. You can directly compare, for example, Blade Runner or the laboratory scenes from Frankenstein to it, though they are lacking when compared to a complete picture of a possible future. Many of the images were inspired directly from the modern art of the time, such as the robot, when compared to the sculptures of Raymond Duchamp-Villon. Perhaps most interesting since it was made well before the rise of Hitler, you get a foretaste of what would happen in fascism - from the over-done architecture to the lines of men as they descend to work like prisoners in concentration camps. It is a tribute to Lang's genius that so many of these images are indelibly etched on the artistic consciousness of the 20C. Even better, with the re-added scenes the vision is far better realized than the original US release, in particular in the complete sequence of the robots transformation. I was completely dazzled by it yet again.

I wish to note that there are many plot subtleties re-added that improve the drama of the film, beyond the fundamental addition of Hel's presence. For example, the dictator has an enforcer who dresses like a protestant preacher, a sinister brute in the background. There is also the transformed man, Jahosafat, who was fired by the dictator and comes to the aid of his son.

All in all, this is essential to any film library. Much of the added print is crude, having been transferred from 16mm replacement prints, so viewers should not expect too much. Finally, there is a wonderful documentary that covers not just the film itself in historical context, but tells the story of the re-discovery of the original version in Argentina.

Recommended with the greatest enthusiasm.

I first "saw" Metropolis about 20 years ago when I was a student, and given the state of the film (90 min runtime) it was inscrutable. So in 2008, when NPR reported that someone found almost all the pieces of Metropolis in Argentina, I never expected that (a) someone would actually pay big bucks to "restore" the film and (b) that I'd actually get to "see" it, in a theater, with live music accompaniment. Both of these things happened. Kino restored the film in what can only be described as the greatest labour of love, and the Seattle Film Festival folk organized a week long screening in 2010. After "seeing" the restored film (the blu-ray on a very good digital projector) there was no way NOT to buy the blu-ray. This is a movie for the ages. The very simple opening message (the mediator between the head and the hands must be the heart) still holds true.

Yes, we all know that the recently found parts are not as good quality (oddly cropped and much less contrasty) as the original material, but we also all know (or at least we should know) that one buys this blu-ray for the FILM not the quality of the print. And this is a great movie, maybe one of the greatest movies of all time. And it has been given the best restoration anyone could hope for. And I for one do not plan to wait for another N >>1 years till somebody else finds another "more complete" Metropolis nitrate print in some abandoned vault in some ex-iron curtain country... I want to enjoy this treasure and share it with my young children now.

I've come to appreciate the history behind this film almost as much as the movie itself. It's great to see the most complete version put together on blu-ray. My only real complaint is what I think most people online agree with on this release - not enough bonus content. The previous release by Kino included a wonderful commentary and an interview with the restoration crew. This version comes with a documentary on the finding of the Buenos Aires footage, which is great, and a short interview with the people who brought it to light. But why not carry over the previous features to this version to truly make it a complete release? The video and audio are going to look the best that they can here but it's a waste of the format not to include more content to justify the higher price, particularly if it's material that was previously available earlier. If you're a completist I'd recommend checking out the Masters of Cinema version before purchasing this one.

While the film is fantastic and the extra footage much appreciated, Kino missed a real opportunity here to produce an excellent disc with a wide-range of extras. If you want the extras from previous Kino releases, you won't find them here. There's no commentary track. The Kino website notes that if you live outside North America, you must buy the Masters of Cinema Eureka BD/DVD, which is also released this week. Yes, now that edition has loads of extras, including a commentary by David Kalat, a 56 page book, and the original German intertitles, which are missing here. And guess what? That region B/2 edition is cheaper! So I suggest you buy a multi-region player and get a better edition than this one. Unfortunately, if you don't also have a multi-region BD player, you're out of luck, as the MoC edition is region-locked. But at least you could get the DVD and watch the extras. Honestly, it boggles the mind that Kino has neglected this release, especially when their own site references the other release. If in a few years, Kino tries to get more money out of me by marketing an extras-packed edition of Metropolis, I won't be buying it.

If you want to see the movie that has spawned inspiration for films and shows like Star Wars, Blade Runner, The Fifth Element, Batman, Dark City, Star Trek, Equilibrium, and a score of others this is it. It's the silent movie made in the 1920's that ended up creating the whole dystopian/cyberpunk genre that became popular generations later. At the time the movie was only a moderate success and was even panned by many critics and science fiction writers. With hindsight being 20/20 there has been much recanting. Still I can understand some of the criticism. Either way today Metropolis is considered a foundation film that launched a genre of films (at least visually if not conceptually).

Metropolis the story is essentially about the struggle involving the social and economic class structure. You have the working class toiling away on the bottom of the city so that the upper class can live in luxury and ease. Somebody from the privileged class sees the inhumane treatment of the workers and tries to help. At the same time a mad scientist and his machinations create a revolt of the underclass that threatens to destroy the city.

So what makes this movie great? It's the visuals and special effects that stand out the most. You can almost say this is the first special effect blockbuster style movie. The cityscape was impressive model work for its time. The sets (especially the Heart Machine) were also pretty impressive (and big for being inside a studio). The scenes with the creation of the robot were amazing then, and the robot itself is still an iconic image in sci-fi. The story is also a winner as it's the classic dystopian conflict that has been told again and again in other shows and books.

So why did the critics pan the movie back then? Well to be frank why do critics pan the current special effects blockbuster Avatar? "Too much focus on special effects and not enough on story", "it's the same plot as (in Metropolis' case Frankenstein)", "it's too cliche". Well you get the idea. Metropolis relied on basic man vs. man and man vs. machine conflict elements without trying to be too complex on that vein. Also the running time for Metropolis is 90+ minutes (depending on what version), which can get pretty drawn out for a silent film. Many of the scenes play out longer than they may need to as far as keeping the attentions of the average viewer. One reviewer (sci-fi author) even panned the special effects showing propeller powered airplanes when he figured the future would hold different technologies. So yeah the movie is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. However the good this movie has does outweigh the bad in terms of how much movie history came from it.

Metropolis is a public domain film. Which means nobody owns the copyright. Which means everybody and their dog can obtain a copy and sell it. That's exactly what has been happening over the years. With the advent of DVD technology it was a veritable minefield of versions out there ranging from adequate to so-crappy-it-doesn't-deserve-to-be-put-on-dvd. It wasn't until 2003 when an authorized version was restored and made the gold standard for DVD. This version also sported the original score for the film, which many of the others lacked to the point where the music actually made the experience worse. So the Restored Authorized version on DVD was the best you can get and deservedly so... until now.

What we have on The Complete Metropolis is not only an authorized remaster done on Blu-Ray (1080p), but 25 minutes of additional footage have been uncovered after 80 years and put back into the film. This is the most complete version of Metropolis you will ever find! It's even more complete than what moviegoers in America saw in the theaters. Now the new footage is seriously old and nowhere nearly as well preserved as the rest so you will notice the differences between the cuts. A small price to pay really. On top of that you get the original score in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 performed by the Rundfunk Symphony Orchestra in Berlin (Frank Strobel conducting). In other words this will be the best looking, best sounding, most complete version of this movie that ever existed.

Extras are sparse, but worth it. You get a high definition 50 minute documentary, Voyage to Metropolis, that goes over the making and restoration of the film. You also get an interview with Paula Felix-Didier, who is curator of the museum that uncovered the lost footage. And to top off the extras list a recent movie trailer. The only downside on this is the extras that were on the Restored Authorized edition are not to be found. That one had two featurettes (one on the making of the movie and one on the restoration) in multiple languages, production stills, cast and crew biographies, commentaries and more. If you ask me this "complete" edition can use some more meat when compared.

If you want the most complete footage of Metropolis in existence, AND in high definition, then now is your chance. While this disk may be sparse on the extras it does make up for it in the treatment of one of science fiction's most prized treasures.

Alloy Orchestra and the best way to see Metropolis

The first movie scored by the Alloy Orchestra was Metropolis, and for years they performed that score live with showings of the Giorgio Moroder restoration of the film that was released in the 1980s. They also recorded that score on a 2 CD set and it can be synced up with the Moroder version very nicely (start the music when the introductory text first appears in the black box before the Metropolis title appears).

For the US Premiere of the complete version of Metropolis that appears on this Blu ray disc (and DVD), the Alloy Orchestra was asked update and lengthen the score and perform it at the TCM festival in 2010. They did and they have also recorded that score in 24 bit 48 khz high resolution sound; the plan was to include it on the Kino Blu ray, but as you can read in one of the other reviews, that didn't happen. But Alloy Orchestra is selling an mp3 CD of the score (and directions for synchronizing it to the movie) on their website (google them by name). Having seen Metropolis with the recorded original score and also with the Alloy Orchestra performing live, I would say there is no contest. I would never chose to watch it again without the Alloy Orchestra score, but I do plan to show it to friends in my home theatre with the Alloy Orchestra score more than once.

If you choose to order the Alloy Orchestra score, you might want to inquire about getting better quality sound than the mp3 CD. It was recorded in high resolution sound and if there are enough requests, they might be persuaded to release it as a high resolution sound audio DVD, to play along with your Blu ray of the movie on a separate player or from your computer.

Alloy Orchestra has also composed numerous other scores for silent movies and a number of them are available as the soundtrack or as an alternative soundtrack on DVDs of the films. They are all highly recommended

As Roger Ebert once said, "Metropolis" is a "...mistreated masterpiece..." and I could not agree more. Before this edition of "Metropolis, all other versions were incoherent and were missing many scenes that were once thought lost. However, in 2008, they discovered something truly special. They founf a 16mm print of a near complete version of "Metropolis"! This print, while has terrible quality, had 25 minutes of once missing scenes that were crucial to story, such as Freder taking the place of the worker, 11811, more scenes of the robotic-like Thin Man, and at last, why Rotwang has such hatred for Frederson. The missing scenes, along with the 2001 print, combined to create the ultimate "Metropolis" experience! A newly recorded version of the original score by Godfried Huppertz has been added especially for this edition. The score is nothing less than astounding, and helps carry the power of Lang's visuals. With too many highlights to name, "The Complete Metropolis" is truly one of the greatest cinematic acheivements ever, one of my favorite films.