
Interview with Fritz Lang, Beverley Hills, August 12, 1972 - benbreen
https://mubi.com/notebook/posts/interview-with-fritz-lang-beverley-hills-august-12-1972
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codeulike
So hear me out. Although Metropolis is a milestone in technical cinematic
terms, the actual story is silly, the moral at the end is patronising, and the
sci-fi content is weak, even for its time. So the modern equivalent would be
something with a huge budget, flashy production and amazing special effects
but with a rubbish story. Something like Starship Troopers maybe (although
thats actually quite good as a satire). Or maybe 'Cowboys and Aliens'.

When you watch it and it seems a bit hokey, don't make excuses for it. It most
probably seemed equally hokey to people at the time. For example here's a
contemporary review by H. G. Wells:

 _The film’s air of having something grave and wonderful to say is transparent
pretence. It has nothing to do with any social or moral issue before the world
or with any that can ever conceivably arise. It is bunkum and poor and thin
even as bunkum. I am astonished at the toleration shown it by quite a number
of film critics on both sides of the Atlantic._

[https://www.wired.com/beyond-the-beyond/2018/07/h-g-wells-
re...](https://www.wired.com/beyond-the-beyond/2018/07/h-g-wells-reviews-
movie-metropolis/)

~~~
johnchristopher
> So the modern equivalent would be something with a huge budget, flashy
> production and amazing special effects but with a rubbish story. Something
> like Starship Troopers maybe (although thats actually quite good as a
> satire). Or maybe 'Cowboys and Aliens'.

So... Avatar ?

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Fins
Just as I was going to say that...

Although I think that plot aside, Metropolis has far more artistic merit than
Avatar (or anything Cameron ever made, makes, or will make).

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amanaplanacanal
I dunno, The Terminator was pretty good.

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Fins
On artistic merit? I don't think so. As brainless entertainment, as long as
you don't mind plot holes you could drive a whole T-1000 factory through, it
was pretty good (because Ah-nuld), but as something else... I don't think so,
just a typical Cameron

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yesenadam
I watched _Scarlet Street_ a few days ago. What an awesome movie. Noir with a
_very_ dark ending... It's got a lot of talk about art in it, quite funny at
times, mocking critics and the art world. A painter falls into the hands of a
con-man and his girlfriend. Very highly recommended.

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roryrjb
Semi-tangential recommendation, and since Godard is mentioned in the article:
Le Mepris
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contempt_(film)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contempt_\(film\)))

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Theizestooke
the main musical theme is amazing. still thinking about it, saw it decades
ago.

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graeme
Georges Delerue was an incredible composer. The theme:

[https://youtu.be/aUs4awmb3-o](https://youtu.be/aUs4awmb3-o)

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corysama
If you have any interest in Metropolis the movie, you really should read
Metropolis the book. It is the most intensely visual work I’ve ever read. I
would often need to take a minute between pages to work through the
descriptions in my head.

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feistypharit
Been thinking a lot about "metropolis" lately. Need to watch it again soon.

~~~
wolfi1
which version? there is now a version which includes all the scenes (from an
archive in Argentina, IIRC)

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Charlie_26
Saw this in Edinburgh recently with a live DJ soundtrack by Le Vangelis. Only
time I've seen it so I was a bit skeptical about the music but it made it so
much more incredible.

