Metropolis

Year:

1927

Duration:

Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi

IMDB rate:

8.3

Director:

Fritz Lang

Awards:

3 wins & 4 nominations

Details

Country: Germany

Release Date: 1927-03-13

Filming Locations: Filmwerke Staaken, Staaken, Spandau, Berlin, Germany

Earnings

Opening Weekend: $19,978 (USA) (9 May 2010)

Gross: $26,435 (USA) (13 November 2011)

Cast

Actor

Character

Heinrich George

Metropolis

Alfred Abel

Joh Fredersen

Gustav Fröhlich

Freder - Joh Fredersen's Son

Rudolf Klein-Rogge

C.A. Rotwang - the Inventor

Fritz Rasp

The Thin Man

Theodor Loos

Josaphat

Erwin Biswanger

11811 - Georgy

Brigitte Helm

The Machine Man

Fritz Alberti

Creative Human - Man who Convinces Babel (uncredited)

Grete Berger

Working Woman (uncredited)

Olly Boeheim

Working Woman (uncredited)

Max Dietze

Working Man

Ellen Frey

Working Woman (uncredited)

Beatrice Garga

Woman of Eternal Gardens (uncredited)

Heinrich Gotho

Master of Ceremonies (uncredited)

Dolly Grey

Working Woman (uncredited)

Anny Hintze

Woman of Eternal Gardens (uncredited)

Georg John

Working Man Who Causes Explosion of M-Machine

Walter Kuehle

Working Man

Margarete Lanner

Lady in Car / Woman of Eternal Gardens (uncredited)

Rose Lichtenstein

Working Woman (uncredited)

Hanns Leo Reich

Marinus (uncredited)

Arthur Reinhardt

Working Man

Curt Siodmak

Working Man

Henrietta Siodmak

Working Woman (uncredited)

Olaf Storm

Jan (uncredited)

Erwin Vater

Working Man

Rolf von Goth

Son in Eternal Gardens (uncredited)

Helen von Münchofen

Woman of Eternal Gardens (uncredited)

Helene Weigel

Working Woman (uncredited)

Hilde Woitscheff

Woman of Eternal Gardens (uncredited)

Did you know?

Trivia

Brigitte Helm's robot costume was extremely uncomfortable to wear. Helm suffered greatly underneath it as it cut and bruised her though Fritz Lang insisted that she had to wear it.

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Over 25,000 extras were involved in the making of the film.

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The film takes place in 2026.

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Goofs

Fritz Lang shot more than one version of this movie. There are differences between the version on the Madacy DVD and the Kino DVD. In the Kino DVD, Freder exits the Moloch machine hall in chapter 7 (at around 55 mins). The shot of Freder descending the stairs is missing two motorized utility carts. These appear in the Madacy Video DVD in Chapter 3 (at around 24 mins).

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When Freder first sees the statues of the Seven Deadly Sins, there is almost imperceptible movement by the actors playing some of them, notably 'Eitelkeit'.

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In the Kino Video DVD, the cityscape shot that ends in Chapter 7 (at around 1 min) is cut short. It ends before a dirigible crosses the top of the shot flying from right to left. The dirigible appears in the Madacy Video DVD in Chapter 3 (at around 21 mins).

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Quotes

Maria: "We shall build a tower that will reach to the stars!" Having conceived Babel, yet unable to build it themselves, they had thousands to build it for them. But those who toiled knew nothing of the dreams of those who planned. And the minds that planned the Tower of Babel cared nothing for the workers who built it. The hymns of praise of the few became the curses of the many - BABEL! BABEL! BABEL! - Between the mind that plans and the hands that build there must be a Mediator, and this must be the heart.

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Maria: There can be no understanding between the hand and the brain unless the heart acts as mediator.

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Freder: It was their hands that built this city of ours, Father. But where do the hands belong in your scheme?

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Faq

Q

A Note Regarding Spoilers

A

The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags have been used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.

Q

How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?

A

For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for Metropolis can be found here.

Q

How did they shoot the rings around the machine when it was transforming into the guise of Maria?

A

Cinefex, a quarterly magazine devoted to motion picture visual effects, ran an in-depth article that included this effects shot -- the transformation of Maria into the stylish female robot that gets reborn and takes its first faltering steps. This extended sequence was essentially an extremely elaborate multi-exposure shot. A miniature figure of the Machine-Man was created and covered in non-reflective black velvet and was aligned into a double-exposed shot of the seated Maria. Behind the double, greased circular reflective hoops were elevated up and down [one camera-pass at a time] by a forklift-like mechanism behind her, and the resulting blurred multiple-exposures enabled the over-exposed glowing rings to overlap.

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