A Look at a Classic

I've mentioned before how much I enjoy sci-fi. Now, I'm not into everything sci-fi. Don't shoot me when I tell you I've never seen Blade Runner all the way through. I know that's a powerhouse favorite for many, but I just never got into it. Maybe it was my surroundings at the time. I'm willing to give it another go someday.

But I thought I'd go back even further and share my thoughts of a classic silent sci-fi film. I was first introduced to it around 1986 by way of Giorgio Moroder.

Fritz Lang's Metropolis stunned audiences back in 1927. A harsh look at the very real class differentiation set in the future. It's the story of young, oblivious Freder, son of Elitist John Fredersen who runs the city of Metropolis. Freder sees the beautiful Maria as she leads children from the depths of the city to see what the sun looks like. He instantly falls in love and follows Maria to the bowels of Metropolis, only to discover the workers don't have it so good.

Maria leads an uplifting time of encouragement with the workers, and while a few of them speak of revolt, she calms them with hope of a mediator who will reconcile the Elite and the workers. In the meantime, Freder's father decides to stir things up by sending in a robot to sabotage the workers and discredit Maria.

In order to avoid spoilers, I'm going to leave it there and just say that things go crazy. And even though it's an older film, it's a timely message. We can all relate to something from this movie--romance, love for our fellow man, overcoming adversity. It's a great film. (And I prefer the version with the score by Giorgio Moroder). Definitely worth seeking out for a viewing.