Metropolis Review
Metropolis is the first silent and black and white film I have ever watched. Initially, I was worried I would not be kept entertained or following the storyline, but the director and actors did a great job of conveying the message clearly. The use of exaggerated facial expressions, hand gestures, and makeup relayed the message across without people talking. The director of the film did really great job in exploring and resolving the division between classes. The elite were seen living above ground while the working class were working below ground. Freder is the one who really begins to break the rigid division between classes. When he sees Maria in all her beauty, he ventures down to the depth of the working class and begins helping them. Throughout his journey in helping the working class, he is constantly trying to figure out "who" the mediator is between the head and hands. As revealed at the end of the film, the heart is the mediator and is all that is needed to join people together and to soften the rigid divisions between people. This is especially seen with Joh. It is almost as if he evolved from having the mentality of machine directing the working city below with no sense of feelings for others to becoming human and connecting with his humanity. When Joh realized Freder was "downstairs" when the city started to flood and he began to panic he was going to lose his son. This is what it took for him to realize the feeling he got is what every other parent must feel about their child who is working below ground. His heart exceeded his head and he finally had a sense of empathy. On the same note, taking the perspective of a nursing major, who has an overwhelming sense of empathy, Maria can almost take the role of a "nurse" in this film. She empathy and worry for the kids s revealed when she frantically tries to ring the bell and turn the lever off to stop the water levels from rising. She is a nurturer and healer. Overall, although the film was confusing at times, the message of the film was creatively delivered.
I completely agree! I think the over-exaggerated make up, expressions, and movements of Maria and the Machine Maria really helped me understand what was going on in this film. I even found myself asking "How does Freder not realize that's not the real Maria being burned at the stake?" because of the extreme contrast of the Machine Maria's expression, acting as if she is happy to be burned because she still destroyed the lower class's world. I think that Joh's character development is also just such an essential part of this film!
ReplyDeleteI love how you compared Maria to being a nurse-like figure! She definitely takes on the role of being a caretaker of children and a protector. I also noted how it is essential to hold on to our sense of empathy in order to maintain our humanity. Joh Fredersen is a perfect example of losing his sense of humanity because he forgot he was able to feel emotions. Once he found out the Freder was in danger, he rediscovered his humanity, which ultimately changed his perspective and began accepting equality within the city.
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