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This 1931 film puts one of the musical theatre masterpieces of the 20th century--a slashing attack on greed, violence, and social pretension--in the visual and musical context of its origins. Musically, it omits some of Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht's numbers and gives to others a softer edge than the hard-hitting music took on in the last half of the century. The 1931 singers, including Weill's wife and definitive interpreter Lotte Lenya, tend to croon numbers that are snarled or barked in the definitive audio recording Lenya made and supervised in the 1950s. A comparison of the 1931 "Pirate Jenny" song, for example, with the recording a quarter-century later shows how performing styles toughened after World War II.

For those interested in performance history, this is a priceless document. For those looking for a dramatic experience, it has less impact than it would have if it were made today, but it still has plenty. This print is considerably sharper than some copies that were available before digital remastering was perfected. --Joe McLellan ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Die 3groschenoper
Everyone else has told you the entire negative about this film. However there was nothing that is not said about most films tat are adaptations of plays or books. Remember folks, this is a different media and should be judged with that criterion in mind. Now you can pick on sound and picture quality. Yet again you need to keep the time of production and copy quality in mind.

I also think that this makes a better stage play and the variations in performances intriguing. However as with listening to the radio in the car, it is the best we can do to keep the memory of the actual orchestra. So when we have to listen to Wayne Newton, we can still imagine "Mack die Messer" No time in 113 minutes for all the songs.

This play was not anti Nazi it is the other way around. The Nazi regime did not like this play because it showed how illegitimacy could rise to respectability. And as they say in "Harry Potter" books, "you know who," thought that this was too close to the truth. If you are into movies that irk Nazi's try "Westfront 1918 (1930)" Directed by Georg Wilhelm Pabst. You may have to search but it is out there.

Anyway, this is a good movie and worth watching. And watching again.

Disturbing story, silent protest of emerging Nazi regime
Kurt Weil and Bertold Brecht were known opposers of the emerging Nazi regime. "The Three Penny Opera" made it official: The artists were no longer welcome in their native Germany. -- The macabre story of Mecky Messer and his bride Polly is best known to us through the immortal song "Mack The Knife", but there is much more to this than the glorification of a serial killer. --This film appears worn; The scenes are stagy and the sound is aweful (the music played live in the background as the action was filmed!), but the message passed the test of time. I recommend this film especially to Theatre and History Majors.

Certainly not Brecht
I've seen the movie version of this, one of the best scores and scripts created in the "musical theatre genre." While Lotte Lenya and the supporting cast are very good, this version is hardly true to Brecht or his style. Apparently Brecht did not understand that by selling the screen rights to the script, he was also giving the producers liscence to do whatever the wanted with it - and he had no power over it. The endind is notably changed from any translation you are likely to find in print, and few of the best songs remain - as a matter of fact, i recall only about four or five songs in the film verison. Mr. And Mrs. Peachum, while wonderfully portrayed, are far from the middle-class underlords we love them to be - they were a mismatched pair, Mrs. Peachum in a fabulous dress, and drop earings, and Peachum looking like one of his beggars. A interesting note, though: MacHeath's gang are adorable, fun and very will played!

Not what the title promises
This is a far cry from the stage version with not only several songs missing but what seems to be a rewrite of the script and book. The acting is pre-1931--as one history of cinema puts its, a style we will never see again--and the film techniques are from the silent days. But it has some powerful moments, mostly when the Streetsinger is on screen. Among the visual highlights are the confrontation of the Army of Poor with the Queen (who looks too old to be Victoria), the marriage of Polly and Mack among the purloined furniture and trappings, and the marvelous resolution of the ex-police chief Brown, Mack, and Peachem becoming "respectable" bankers (i.e., thieves). So this is worth a good deal as a social document is but is not worth much as a musical event. (Question: if all the signs of the shops are in English, why do the Poor carry signs in German?)

awkward but historically interesting
Considering Brecht was very displeased with this film its no wonder it bears little resemblance to the stage version,flat performances ( including Lenya who must have been amazing on stage), the omission of half the score ,including solomon song, tango duet,and the lucy role altogether, the ending being changed,omitting the hanging and reprival, and poor subtitles make this a curious but ininspired production. even the time period is wrong,victoria became queen in 1832 not the 1890s! still as a film that set all of nazi germany into a flutter it has moments of great social commentary. no as many as the masterpiece stage production however. ... Read more

Reviews (139)

A new perspective on the release debate..
Metropolis is a brilliant piece of work. I'll say this up front to get it out of the way: I haven't seen the DVD, but I understand the arguments; I have a slightly different opinion. Most people absolutely adore the Moroder release of Metropolis, with the tinted scenes and the modern (for the 80's) soundtrack... but I personally found it atrocious. The quality was great, don't get me wrong.. but when I think of the imagery in this film, I don't think of Bonnie Tyler and Queen. I do, however, admire the effort. I definitely agree with putting modern scores with silent films, this one just didn't work for me.

That said, I've noticed a lot of people dissatisfied with the music on several releases.. I'm a bit of a fan of the silent films.. I have yet to see one with a decent soundtrack. If I see one more 'Nosferatu' with a blaring organ score I swear I'll vomit; and don't even get me started on the 1990 version of Phantom of the Opera with score by Rick Wakeman. But I am a big fan of the films, so this is how I've managed to get past the horrible music without watching them silently. Find a CD that reflects the ideas and atmosphere you feel to be present in Metropolis, and let it play while you watch the film.

I have one of the many 115-minute versions, and the image quality is a bit rough, but that doesn't really bother me.. I've always seen Metropolis as an Industrial film anyway. The rough quality just adds to it for me (granted, I have seen versions of this too rough to watch). For that reason, I chose Nine Inch Nails' "The Fragile" as the score for Metropolis.. it works very well with my release.. some memorable moments (if you try this, you may not get these exact moments with the different releases) are the "Moloch" scene when Freder sees the machine explode .. the workers gather their injured and dead as Trent Reznor screams the lyrics "Now you know - this is what it feels like" - and the first scene between Freder and Maria .. Freder kneeling at her feet, in a sort of rapture.. while Trent sings "I will take my place in the great below" .. that song (and the first disc of "The Fragile") ends as Freder kisses Maria's hand and walks away.. But I won't give away all the quirks. Anyway, that's the score that works for me.. both discs of the Fragile and the first two tracks of "Further Down The Spiral" at the end, since The Fragile isn't quite 115 minutes long.

But anyway, having said all that, if you saw Metropolis and didn't like it because of the quality or soundtrack or just because it was boring, try again, and make your own score. Most people who think they don't like silent films simply don't like the music, or the silence. This is understandable.. in silent films the score is 75% of the atmosphere. Use music that you know, that you like.. music that will set the mood for horror if you're watching "Phantom" or "Nosferatu," or for Industrial SciFi if you're watching "Metropolis." I think you'll get a lot more out of the genre that way.

Film History. A masterpiece of cinema.
Metropolis is a landmark of all the films produced in history. Not only is the silent film entertaining, it provides an insight on prejudice and the division of different societies. Just think, this bias was still going on in the movie, set way after Martin Luther King passed away. Parts of the film may be disturbing, since it is very realistic, and could occur in the earth's later years.
However, there are many different versions released on this film. I have also heard that the Madacy DVD is terrible. True, the movie is over 75 years old, but Madacy spends so little time in putting a convenient quality transfer to their products. The tinted version by Morodor is supposed to be superior to the Madacy AND Allied Artists Releases. I own two VHS versions, and will not risk hunting for a good quality DVD. One version is a clean, sensational print, and this is Kino Video. BUY THIS VERSION AT ALL COSTS! Title cards were even inserted into the missing scenes to tell what is happening. The other VHS version is-- well, it could use some shaping up. This version is by Timeless Video Classics, and is much shorter than the Kino release. The quality is mediocre, and the print is very dirty and washed out in many areas. There are also several master tape dropouts. The title of the film reads "METROPOLI". All the other copies released besides the Kino version probably contain this shabby print.
To appreciate Metropolis and it's action in full glory, buy the Kino video or, better yet, the DVD. Since this is an excellent movie to be watched by critics and moviegoers alike, get the very BEST movie version on the market, and enjoy!

A Great film,BEWARE OF PUBLIC DOMAIN VERSIONS!
"Metropolis",Fritz Lang's 1927 silent masterpiece,is one of the most important films ever made and also a great one! But over the years,this film has been reedited,recut,and shortened which ruins the exact vision of an extrordinary filmmaker.Since its stay on the Public Domain shelf,the prints and image quality have over the years been poor.I DO NOT recommend the following versions:1.the Goodtimes Video release has poor image quality and even worse,NO MUSICAL SCORE! 2.The now-notorious Madacy DVD, which is about 5 times as worse as the Goodtimes video release,contains horrible,blurry image quality,freeze-frame opening titles,and an annoying musical score! Just recently,TCM (Turner Classic Movies) has broadcast the brand-new,beautifully restored 2002 restoration of "Metropolis" which I taped off of and trust me,it's well worth it! Buy the Kino restored version on either VHS or DVD,but DO NOT buy the horrible Public Domain versions which can definitely rip you off! A Terrific film and thanks to Kino for making this restored version a definite must-see! I also recommend the 1984 rerelease by Giorgio Moroder (which is now unfortunately out-of-print)and buy the soundtrack to go with it!

Historical Masterpiece, Terrible DVD
I never saw Metropolis except for small sections referenced by other films. It always appealed to me and I finally took a risk buying this used for cheap. Even at an inexpensive price I'd strongly advise to skip this version.

As others have noted the trasfer is terrible, the music is good but sound quality is terrible too. Having watched this version of Metropolis I was able to get some kind of plot out of it and even with the poor film transfer the imagry is at times stunning.

Here's my advice; if you just have to see Metropolis and do not want to pay the substantially high price of the Kino version buy this copy, but understand...and please take my word on this as I'm one of the people that made a similar decision, know that you are getting poor quality all around.

Whether this will ruin the film's experience for you has more to do with your aesthetics. Metropolis has major historical importance and watching it I could see where other favorite dystopian films liberally borrowed ideas. In the end it was acceptable for the price I paid. I would not buy this new and would cough up the extra money and get the Kino version if buying it new. I will be purchasing the latest DVD eventually just to be able to enjoy the superior quality.

5 stars for the film being wonderful 0 stars for the quality. The average would be 2.5 and although it's a great film Metropolis is gutted by this poor DVD. When reading reviews it is easy to take it personal, that a poor review of the DVD (a product) in some way says something negative towards the film on it. In this review the quality of the film is the only reason more than one star was given.

My last parting shot...
The reason I even bothered with the Mandacy product was because so many negative reviews on Amazon have been baseless or inane one line insults I have become numb to them. Take it from a usually easy to please reviewer. Stay away from this DVD.

GREAT Movie - Poor DVD!
METROPOLIS is in simple words a classic long in the making, and probably a major inspiration for George Lucas' STAR WARS films, and many other major science-fiction films to be decades later from its' initial release in 1926. Film also works as a major triumph of human relations with the idea of slavery workers, and rebelling against greater authority. Plus what can go wrong when power falls into the wrong hands. Rudolf Klein-Rogge's Rotwang is an unforgettable character, and the creation of the robot scene is still an eye-filler even long before CG effects technology some 60 years later.

The DVD quality is poor however, as the color contrast is lacking from the color contrast from the original negatives seen on VHS releases. The trivia sections are nice, but what is missing is an audio commentary, or any existence history of the making of the film which should prove very interesting. I'm sure it won't be long before such a version comes to be.

TRIVIA: Brigitte Helm was one of James Whale's choices to play the Monster's Mate in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN before Elsa Lanchester got the part. ... Read more

Reviews (139)

A new perspective on the release debate..
Metropolis is a brilliant piece of work. I'll say this up front to get it out of the way: I haven't seen the DVD, but I understand the arguments; I have a slightly different opinion. Most people absolutely adore the Moroder release of Metropolis, with the tinted scenes and the modern (for the 80's) soundtrack... but I personally found it atrocious. The quality was great, don't get me wrong.. but when I think of the imagery in this film, I don't think of Bonnie Tyler and Queen. I do, however, admire the effort. I definitely agree with putting modern scores with silent films, this one just didn't work for me.

That said, I've noticed a lot of people dissatisfied with the music on several releases.. I'm a bit of a fan of the silent films.. I have yet to see one with a decent soundtrack. If I see one more 'Nosferatu' with a blaring organ score I swear I'll vomit; and don't even get me started on the 1990 version of Phantom of the Opera with score by Rick Wakeman. But I am a big fan of the films, so this is how I've managed to get past the horrible music without watching them silently. Find a CD that reflects the ideas and atmosphere you feel to be present in Metropolis, and let it play while you watch the film.

I have one of the many 115-minute versions, and the image quality is a bit rough, but that doesn't really bother me.. I've always seen Metropolis as an Industrial film anyway. The rough quality just adds to it for me (granted, I have seen versions of this too rough to watch). For that reason, I chose Nine Inch Nails' "The Fragile" as the score for Metropolis.. it works very well with my release.. some memorable moments (if you try this, you may not get these exact moments with the different releases) are the "Moloch" scene when Freder sees the machine explode .. the workers gather their injured and dead as Trent Reznor screams the lyrics "Now you know - this is what it feels like" - and the first scene between Freder and Maria .. Freder kneeling at her feet, in a sort of rapture.. while Trent sings "I will take my place in the great below" .. that song (and the first disc of "The Fragile") ends as Freder kisses Maria's hand and walks away.. But I won't give away all the quirks. Anyway, that's the score that works for me.. both discs of the Fragile and the first two tracks of "Further Down The Spiral" at the end, since The Fragile isn't quite 115 minutes long.

But anyway, having said all that, if you saw Metropolis and didn't like it because of the quality or soundtrack or just because it was boring, try again, and make your own score. Most people who think they don't like silent films simply don't like the music, or the silence. This is understandable.. in silent films the score is 75% of the atmosphere. Use music that you know, that you like.. music that will set the mood for horror if you're watching "Phantom" or "Nosferatu," or for Industrial SciFi if you're watching "Metropolis." I think you'll get a lot more out of the genre that way.

Film History. A masterpiece of cinema.
Metropolis is a landmark of all the films produced in history. Not only is the silent film entertaining, it provides an insight on prejudice and the division of different societies. Just think, this bias was still going on in the movie, set way after Martin Luther King passed away. Parts of the film may be disturbing, since it is very realistic, and could occur in the earth's later years.
However, there are many different versions released on this film. I have also heard that the Madacy DVD is terrible. True, the movie is over 75 years old, but Madacy spends so little time in putting a convenient quality transfer to their products. The tinted version by Morodor is supposed to be superior to the Madacy AND Allied Artists Releases. I own two VHS versions, and will not risk hunting for a good quality DVD. One version is a clean, sensational print, and this is Kino Video. BUY THIS VERSION AT ALL COSTS! Title cards were even inserted into the missing scenes to tell what is happening. The other VHS version is-- well, it could use some shaping up. This version is by Timeless Video Classics, and is much shorter than the Kino release. The quality is mediocre, and the print is very dirty and washed out in many areas. There are also several master tape dropouts. The title of the film reads "METROPOLI". All the other copies released besides the Kino version probably contain this shabby print.
To appreciate Metropolis and it's action in full glory, buy the Kino video or, better yet, the DVD. Since this is an excellent movie to be watched by critics and moviegoers alike, get the very BEST movie version on the market, and enjoy!

A Great film,BEWARE OF PUBLIC DOMAIN VERSIONS!
"Metropolis",Fritz Lang's 1927 silent masterpiece,is one of the most important films ever made and also a great one! But over the years,this film has been reedited,recut,and shortened which ruins the exact vision of an extrordinary filmmaker.Since its stay on the Public Domain shelf,the prints and image quality have over the years been poor.I DO NOT recommend the following versions:1.the Goodtimes Video release has poor image quality and even worse,NO MUSICAL SCORE! 2.The now-notorious Madacy DVD, which is about 5 times as worse as the Goodtimes video release,contains horrible,blurry image quality,freeze-frame opening titles,and an annoying musical score! Just recently,TCM (Turner Classic Movies) has broadcast the brand-new,beautifully restored 2002 restoration of "Metropolis" which I taped off of and trust me,it's well worth it! Buy the Kino restored version on either VHS or DVD,but DO NOT buy the horrible Public Domain versions which can definitely rip you off! A Terrific film and thanks to Kino for making this restored version a definite must-see! I also recommend the 1984 rerelease by Giorgio Moroder (which is now unfortunately out-of-print)and buy the soundtrack to go with it!

Historical Masterpiece, Terrible DVD
I never saw Metropolis except for small sections referenced by other films. It always appealed to me and I finally took a risk buying this used for cheap. Even at an inexpensive price I'd strongly advise to skip this version.

As others have noted the trasfer is terrible, the music is good but sound quality is terrible too. Having watched this version of Metropolis I was able to get some kind of plot out of it and even with the poor film transfer the imagry is at times stunning.

Here's my advice; if you just have to see Metropolis and do not want to pay the substantially high price of the Kino version buy this copy, but understand...and please take my word on this as I'm one of the people that made a similar decision, know that you are getting poor quality all around.

Whether this will ruin the film's experience for you has more to do with your aesthetics. Metropolis has major historical importance and watching it I could see where other favorite dystopian films liberally borrowed ideas. In the end it was acceptable for the price I paid. I would not buy this new and would cough up the extra money and get the Kino version if buying it new. I will be purchasing the latest DVD eventually just to be able to enjoy the superior quality.

5 stars for the film being wonderful 0 stars for the quality. The average would be 2.5 and although it's a great film Metropolis is gutted by this poor DVD. When reading reviews it is easy to take it personal, that a poor review of the DVD (a product) in some way says something negative towards the film on it. In this review the quality of the film is the only reason more than one star was given.

My last parting shot...
The reason I even bothered with the Mandacy product was because so many negative reviews on Amazon have been baseless or inane one line insults I have become numb to them. Take it from a usually easy to please reviewer. Stay away from this DVD.

GREAT Movie - Poor DVD!
METROPOLIS is in simple words a classic long in the making, and probably a major inspiration for George Lucas' STAR WARS films, and many other major science-fiction films to be decades later from its' initial release in 1926. Film also works as a major triumph of human relations with the idea of slavery workers, and rebelling against greater authority. Plus what can go wrong when power falls into the wrong hands. Rudolf Klein-Rogge's Rotwang is an unforgettable character, and the creation of the robot scene is still an eye-filler even long before CG effects technology some 60 years later.

The DVD quality is poor however, as the color contrast is lacking from the color contrast from the original negatives seen on VHS releases. The trivia sections are nice, but what is missing is an audio commentary, or any existence history of the making of the film which should prove very interesting. I'm sure it won't be long before such a version comes to be.

TRIVIA: Brigitte Helm was one of James Whale's choices to play the Monster's Mate in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN before Elsa Lanchester got the part. ... Read more

Reviews (94)

At Last
Fritz Lang's METROPOLIS was very successful with both critics and audiences when it debuted in 1927 Berlin--but it was thereafter edited for distribution by Channing Pollock, who disliked it and removed great chunks of the film and substantially altered the storyline. The resulting film was admired for its visual style, but it proved a critical and box office disappointment. Neglected in the wake of sound, surviving prints of the film were left to corrode and decay--and when it began to reach the home market via VHS and DVD the results were very hit or miss; Blackhawk released a fairly credible version of the truncated film to home video, but for the most part the quality of these releases varied from barely mediocre to downright unwatchable.

Until now.

A great chunk of METROPOLIS--perhaps as much a quarter of more--has been forever lost, but this Kino Video DVD release offers the single best version of the film available. The previously cut footage that still exists has been restored; gaps in the film have been bridged by the occasional use of stills and explanatory title cards; the film itself has been painstakingly and digitally restored; and the soundtrack is the Gottfried Huppertz original created for the film's 1927 Berlin debut. In seeing this version of METROPOLIS, I was struck by how very differently it reads from the previously available truncated version. The visual style and the story itself are much more exciting and cohesive, and in the wake of this restoration it becomes impossible to deny the film status as landmark of international cinema.

Freder Fredersen (Gustav Frohlich) is the son of Joh Fredersen (Alfred Able), who reigns over the great city of Metropolis. Freder is surprised to discover his lifestyle has been built on the unseen but backbreaking labor of an entire class of unseen workers who tend the machines that make the city run--and he descends to the subterranean levels of Metropolis in an effort to understand their lives... and, not incidentally, to find the mysterious but beautiful woman Maria (Brigitta Helm) who has inspired his interest in the workers' plight. But his father is concerned by both Freder's interest and Maria's activities among the workers, and he turns to scientist C.A. Rotwang (Rudolf Klein-Rogge) for aid. Rotwang has created a robot, and he agrees to give it the likeness of Maria in order to undermine both Freder's love for the girl and her own activities. But Rotwang has a hidden agenda of his own: once the robot has been unleashed, he will use her to destroy Metropolis and thereby exact revenge on Joh Fredersen for past transgressions against him.

In many respects the story is simplistic, but the film's visual style and connotations are anything but. Deeply influenced by such art movements as Expressionism, Objectivism, Art Deco, and Bauhaus, the film is visually fascinating--not only in its scenic designs, but in director Lang's famous skill at creating the powerful crowd scenes that dominate the film and building the pace and tension of the film as it moves toward an intense climax. But while one can--and many do--admire the film purely at this level, there is quite a lot going on in terms of philosophical content as well: while it offers few viable solutions, the film raises such issues as the relationship between capital and labor, the place of religion in modern society, human reaction to overwhelming technology, and (perhaps most interestingly) the drift of government into a class-conscious corporate entity. And religious motifs abound in the film: a largely deserted cathedral; Moloch; the Tower of Babel; and crosses--intriguingly juxtaposed with a repeating motif of the pentagram-like designs associated with the robot. It is fascinating stuff.

There has been complaint that this restoration runs at incorrect speed and the performances are therefore unnecessarily jerky. I did not find this to be the case. In certain instances the movement is deliberately jerky and mechanical--the workers are a case in point--but beyond this there is nothing for which the difference between silent acting and modern acting techniques cannot account. There has also been some complaint that the title cards should have been left in their original German and translated via subtitle. There is a certain validity to this, but it seems a minor quibble; title cards were typically translated in the silent era itself. The DVD includes a number of extras, including still photographs, biographies of the major figures involved in the film, and two interesting documentaries-one on the restoration process and one on the creation of the film itself. Both are interesting; the audio commentary track by film historian Enno Patalas, however, is mildly disappointing. But when all is said and done, it is the film that counts. And this restoration is a remarkable achievement, to say the least, a project which brings a great landmark of world cinema back from the edge of the abyss. Indispensible; a must-own.

--GFT (Amazon Reviewer)--

Spectacular, must-have DVD for any film buff
Metropolis was quite a stunning film for its time. It had "Star Wars" quality special effects which were unheard-of back then--all amazingly done by hand and combined with tedious optical effects. Considering the massive effort and talent required, it was far more ambitious and deserving of praise than Star Wars, which had the luxury of more modern technologies to fall back on. If you view Metropolis in this context, and consider the time period, you can't help but be impressed. In fact, as you watch it, imagine the amazed reaction it must have received in theaters back in the 1920's. Audiences at that time had never seen anything like it. For at least the next 50 years, this film held its own--quite a feat.

The Kino-produced DVD is in itself impressive. It is the absolute best version of the film ever to be made available in any form to the public. The video quality is astonishing considering the difficulty they must have had finding good prints to work with. The audio, too, is superb. You'll really enjoy the extra bonus material as well.

So get this DVD, pop up some popcorn, turn out the lights, and transport yourself back to the 1920's. You're really going to love this one.

Magnificent job
Of all silent films, maybe the only one still watched by a wide public today is Metropolis. Everyone who knows about science fiction knows about Metropolis.
Unfortunately the film was birth-strangled - like Once Upon a Time in America and The Magnificent Ambersons - and it falls into the strange pantheon of movies that are as fragmentary as any ancient scroll.
This only added to the appeal, of course. Like the wine buff who sighs to drink one of THE French vintages from before 1860, cineastes have spculated and respeculated about this fragmentary masterpiece. Why doesn't the story make sense? What was the movie originally like - and can it be fixed?

It is a pity that this film will almost certainly NEVER be completely restored. Like The Magnificent Ambersons, this is a masterpiece that seems permanently damaged. But in 2002, the next best thing was done; and the most complete possible restoration was carried out.

The results are truly remarkable. You can see that silent films were NOT originally shown in a spotty, scratchy condition with hyperactive actors. When they first came out, silent movies looked just as good as any modern movie (well, maybe less screen-resolution). The original soundtrack was discovered and recorded - and it, too, is a revelation. Silent movies were NOT actually silent - they had live soundtracks (though only rich premieres had full orchestras). The soundtrack is as well-composed as any modern soundtrack. I initially thought I would not be able to get used to another soundtrack after hearing the Moroder version - but now I think I can't see the film any other way.

Most importantly, the film now actually makes sense! Every scrap of film possible was extracted from archives all over the world, to make the film as complete as is humanly possible. The scenes still missing (alas, comprising a quarter of the film even now) are signified by intertitles telling the audience what they ought to be seeing. This is not a perfect compromise, but it's probably the best solution.

Silent movies often look strangely modern, since they concentrate almost entirely on visuals at the expense of the actors (a feature that, incidentally, made movies easier to show overseas than any modern movie). Compare that to our movies, which are very heavy on visuals and contain the simplest and least amount of dialogue possible in order to cater to foreign markets. Also, the complete manipulation of the image, so favoured in Metropolis, is very much like modern computer graphics.

Silent Masterpiece
In today's cinematic world, silent movies are often a difficult category to approach. Silent movies are usually referred to almost like a separate genre, as if black and white movies were a single genre. Even silent flick enthusiasts sometimes don't have the right attitude, because the modern appreciation of pre-talkie movies is sometims nothing more shallow than appreciation of a movie because it is a silent movie. This attitude streams from the modern audience that views the silent era as embryonic of the talkies, as technologically handicapped, when in fact, the contemporary audiences of the 20's did not view their motion pictures the same way.

Metropolis is a great move that overcomes most of the barriers between moderns audiences and silent movies. The genre is unmistakably sci-fi--the forerunner to nearly all modern sci-fi movies. It was a fantastic movie that just happens to be a silent movie, and anybody who sees it will understand that silence is not a handicap.

The biggest barrier for silent movies is that there are usually variant DVD editions in circulation, and unlike pictures made in the last few decades, it really does matter which edition you see. Kino's restored edition is (and shall be for a while if not forever) the definitive edition of Metropolis. I had been viewing an incomplete, incoherent version of the film for years before i treated myself to Kino's delightfully exhaustive work, and it was then that i realized what i had been missing. Watching this version was like watching a different movie. In fact, the restoration is so immaculate, it was like watching a movie that was just filmed yesterday, or rather, like i was watching it in 1926.

Kino should be praised for the edition (which they have been), that vindicates fans of Metropolis, sci-fi, and silent movies. Even the flaws are reasonable: some scenes are missing, but they are filled in with explanations and still photos, when available; there could have been enough extras to fill 2 more discs, although the extras included are sufficient and repeatable, as compared to the loads of extras fans normally demand but rarely ever watch.

All in all, this is an excellent restoration of an epic movie that deserves this treatment and attention. Include the Kino version in your collection over all of the inferior versions circulating.

Best movie by a Jewish director ever!
Fritz Lang was indeed Jewish by his mother. I had seen many previous videotape and DVD versions of Metropolis but this longer version beats them all hands down. It's like I'd never seen this film before as so much new (to me) was in this version. Including more fleshing out scenes of the privelaged, rich class of which Freder is a member of. To the poster named Jeff, M was made by Lang while he was still in Germany. I sure look forward to seeing other silent Lang films anbd even longer versions of Metropolis in the future. Buy it today! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Fast-pacing, sinister Great-One by Fritz Lang
Great about this video is that it actually uses the original music score which adds a lot to the pictures. See harakiri-, motorbiking- and traincrash-action! Also a nice love-story and a lot of seducing. Enjoy! ... Read more

Reviews (139)

A new perspective on the release debate..
Metropolis is a brilliant piece of work. I'll say this up front to get it out of the way: I haven't seen the DVD, but I understand the arguments; I have a slightly different opinion. Most people absolutely adore the Moroder release of Metropolis, with the tinted scenes and the modern (for the 80's) soundtrack... but I personally found it atrocious. The quality was great, don't get me wrong.. but when I think of the imagery in this film, I don't think of Bonnie Tyler and Queen. I do, however, admire the effort. I definitely agree with putting modern scores with silent films, this one just didn't work for me.

That said, I've noticed a lot of people dissatisfied with the music on several releases.. I'm a bit of a fan of the silent films.. I have yet to see one with a decent soundtrack. If I see one more 'Nosferatu' with a blaring organ score I swear I'll vomit; and don't even get me started on the 1990 version of Phantom of the Opera with score by Rick Wakeman. But I am a big fan of the films, so this is how I've managed to get past the horrible music without watching them silently. Find a CD that reflects the ideas and atmosphere you feel to be present in Metropolis, and let it play while you watch the film.

I have one of the many 115-minute versions, and the image quality is a bit rough, but that doesn't really bother me.. I've always seen Metropolis as an Industrial film anyway. The rough quality just adds to it for me (granted, I have seen versions of this too rough to watch). For that reason, I chose Nine Inch Nails' "The Fragile" as the score for Metropolis.. it works very well with my release.. some memorable moments (if you try this, you may not get these exact moments with the different releases) are the "Moloch" scene when Freder sees the machine explode .. the workers gather their injured and dead as Trent Reznor screams the lyrics "Now you know - this is what it feels like" - and the first scene between Freder and Maria .. Freder kneeling at her feet, in a sort of rapture.. while Trent sings "I will take my place in the great below" .. that song (and the first disc of "The Fragile") ends as Freder kisses Maria's hand and walks away.. But I won't give away all the quirks. Anyway, that's the score that works for me.. both discs of the Fragile and the first two tracks of "Further Down The Spiral" at the end, since The Fragile isn't quite 115 minutes long.

But anyway, having said all that, if you saw Metropolis and didn't like it because of the quality or soundtrack or just because it was boring, try again, and make your own score. Most people who think they don't like silent films simply don't like the music, or the silence. This is understandable.. in silent films the score is 75% of the atmosphere. Use music that you know, that you like.. music that will set the mood for horror if you're watching "Phantom" or "Nosferatu," or for Industrial SciFi if you're watching "Metropolis." I think you'll get a lot more out of the genre that way.

Film History. A masterpiece of cinema.
Metropolis is a landmark of all the films produced in history. Not only is the silent film entertaining, it provides an insight on prejudice and the division of different societies. Just think, this bias was still going on in the movie, set way after Martin Luther King passed away. Parts of the film may be disturbing, since it is very realistic, and could occur in the earth's later years.
However, there are many different versions released on this film. I have also heard that the Madacy DVD is terrible. True, the movie is over 75 years old, but Madacy spends so little time in putting a convenient quality transfer to their products. The tinted version by Morodor is supposed to be superior to the Madacy AND Allied Artists Releases. I own two VHS versions, and will not risk hunting for a good quality DVD. One version is a clean, sensational print, and this is Kino Video. BUY THIS VERSION AT ALL COSTS! Title cards were even inserted into the missing scenes to tell what is happening. The other VHS version is-- well, it could use some shaping up. This version is by Timeless Video Classics, and is much shorter than the Kino release. The quality is mediocre, and the print is very dirty and washed out in many areas. There are also several master tape dropouts. The title of the film reads "METROPOLI". All the other copies released besides the Kino version probably contain this shabby print.
To appreciate Metropolis and it's action in full glory, buy the Kino video or, better yet, the DVD. Since this is an excellent movie to be watched by critics and moviegoers alike, get the very BEST movie version on the market, and enjoy!

A Great film,BEWARE OF PUBLIC DOMAIN VERSIONS!
"Metropolis",Fritz Lang's 1927 silent masterpiece,is one of the most important films ever made and also a great one! But over the years,this film has been reedited,recut,and shortened which ruins the exact vision of an extrordinary filmmaker.Since its stay on the Public Domain shelf,the prints and image quality have over the years been poor.I DO NOT recommend the following versions:1.the Goodtimes Video release has poor image quality and even worse,NO MUSICAL SCORE! 2.The now-notorious Madacy DVD, which is about 5 times as worse as the Goodtimes video release,contains horrible,blurry image quality,freeze-frame opening titles,and an annoying musical score! Just recently,TCM (Turner Classic Movies) has broadcast the brand-new,beautifully restored 2002 restoration of "Metropolis" which I taped off of and trust me,it's well worth it! Buy the Kino restored version on either VHS or DVD,but DO NOT buy the horrible Public Domain versions which can definitely rip you off! A Terrific film and thanks to Kino for making this restored version a definite must-see! I also recommend the 1984 rerelease by Giorgio Moroder (which is now unfortunately out-of-print)and buy the soundtrack to go with it!

Historical Masterpiece, Terrible DVD
I never saw Metropolis except for small sections referenced by other films. It always appealed to me and I finally took a risk buying this used for cheap. Even at an inexpensive price I'd strongly advise to skip this version.

As others have noted the trasfer is terrible, the music is good but sound quality is terrible too. Having watched this version of Metropolis I was able to get some kind of plot out of it and even with the poor film transfer the imagry is at times stunning.

Here's my advice; if you just have to see Metropolis and do not want to pay the substantially high price of the Kino version buy this copy, but understand...and please take my word on this as I'm one of the people that made a similar decision, know that you are getting poor quality all around.

Whether this will ruin the film's experience for you has more to do with your aesthetics. Metropolis has major historical importance and watching it I could see where other favorite dystopian films liberally borrowed ideas. In the end it was acceptable for the price I paid. I would not buy this new and would cough up the extra money and get the Kino version if buying it new. I will be purchasing the latest DVD eventually just to be able to enjoy the superior quality.

5 stars for the film being wonderful 0 stars for the quality. The average would be 2.5 and although it's a great film Metropolis is gutted by this poor DVD. When reading reviews it is easy to take it personal, that a poor review of the DVD (a product) in some way says something negative towards the film on it. In this review the quality of the film is the only reason more than one star was given.

My last parting shot...
The reason I even bothered with the Mandacy product was because so many negative reviews on Amazon have been baseless or inane one line insults I have become numb to them. Take it from a usually easy to please reviewer. Stay away from this DVD.

GREAT Movie - Poor DVD!
METROPOLIS is in simple words a classic long in the making, and probably a major inspiration for George Lucas' STAR WARS films, and many other major science-fiction films to be decades later from its' initial release in 1926. Film also works as a major triumph of human relations with the idea of slavery workers, and rebelling against greater authority. Plus what can go wrong when power falls into the wrong hands. Rudolf Klein-Rogge's Rotwang is an unforgettable character, and the creation of the robot scene is still an eye-filler even long before CG effects technology some 60 years later.

The DVD quality is poor however, as the color contrast is lacking from the color contrast from the original negatives seen on VHS releases. The trivia sections are nice, but what is missing is an audio commentary, or any existence history of the making of the film which should prove very interesting. I'm sure it won't be long before such a version comes to be.

TRIVIA: Brigitte Helm was one of James Whale's choices to play the Monster's Mate in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN before Elsa Lanchester got the part. ... Read more

Description

Together with Pandora's Box (1928), Diary confirmed Pabst's artistry as one of the great directors of the silent period and established Brooks as an "actress of brilliance, a luminescent personality and a beauty unparalleled in screen history" (Kevin Brownlow, The Parade's Gone By). Brooks, in a delicately restrained performance, plays the naïve daughter of a prosperous pharmacist. Shy and faunlike, the wide-eyed innocent is made pregnant by her father's young assistant. To preserve family honor, she is sent to a repressive reform school from which she eventually escapes. Penniless and homeless, she is directed to a brothel where she becomes liberated and lives for the moment with radiant physical abandon. This Kino on DVD version of Diary of a Lost Girl has been mastered from a new restoration of the film, made by the Bologna Cinematheque, which adds approximately seven minutes of previously censored footage never seen in the United States. An evocative new score has been added by Joseph Turrin. ... Read more

Reviews (12)

Silent Gem
I enjoyed the DVD of "Diary of a Lost Girl", Louise Brooks' second collaboration with G.W. Pabst, although not as much as "Pandora's Box". It is not a sequel, however much this film may seem like one. This film is more sentimental, tragic, and less sexually charged than it's predecessor, and for that reason does not gain a higher rating from me (Pandora's Box being more riske`).

The film is in true black & white (no tinting on this version), and the score is a very suitable composition that is quite appropriate here. The Kino DVD is a fine piece of work and I recommend it to any fan of Brooks or the silent era.

I'm just baffled as to why no one will produce a Region 1 version of "Pandora's Box" on DVD, and give us Diary of a Lost Girl, (somewhat inferior in quality to Pandora's), instead. If only one Louise Brooks film should be transferred to DVD, Pandora's Box must be the first!

But Diary of a Lost Girl is still a good film, and has one or two surprises up its sleeve. I will recommend it on this feature if for no other reason: there aren't many films I can name that are quite like this and Pandora's Box; they are truly unique and quite unlike any other in the history of film.

I also recommend this DVD for the extra short-film "Windy Riley Goes Hollywood". Not because the short is any good, (it's actually pretty lousy), but because it was the first "talkie" by Louise Brooks. I was thrilled when I bought this DVD and finally realized that I would finally get to hear Louise speak as well as watch her act. She was a remarkable natural!

LOUISE BROOKS IGNITES THE SCREEN
In the era of the silent cinema, no one ignited the screen like Louise Brooks. In the still shocking "Pandora's Box," and in the lurid, 1929 melodrama "DIARY OF A LOST GIRL,", the mysterious charisma and stunning beauty of Brooks are on sensational display. Brooks, the ultimate 20s flapper, plays idealistic and innocent Thymian, who's raped by her unscrupulous pharmacist father's scabrous assistant. She leaves a child behind, escapes a horrible reform school and ends up working in a brothel. The great G.W. Pabst, who directed Brooks in "Pandora" directs again with an invisible hand. This masterpiece of German Expressionism is about 10 minutes longer and has over 80 slightly different cuts than the 1990 English version released on video (Kino). "Diary of a Lost Girl" is an absolutely exquisite film of great emotional power. Close ups of Brooks defy description. She will take your breath away.

A silent with no expiration date
Great quality picture dvd. A great movie for those for are afraid to venture into the silent category. The direction, the story, the acting done by Ms. Brooks is superb.

Mr. Pabst's movies need more recognition. When "Pandora's Box" on dvd?

Louise Brooks reminds me of the recent actress in Amelie. Not that they look alike, but because of their radiance, the tremendous impression they make on the viewer. Ms. Brooks's interpretation is so realistic it makes you feel you are really there in the room with her.

Probably the most beautiful woman I have ever seen on screen
And she can act. Louise Brooks's restrained but affecting performance elevates what would have been to me a shamelessly sensational and sordid melodrama into moving and compelling entertainment. I am docking this half a star for the abrupt (albeit somewhat positive) ending, and some embarrassingly hammy (and creepy)overacting by several of the key supporting actors; in contrast, all of the supporting actresses did a fine job: notably the hausfrauses playing the former-housemaid-turned-"evil"-stepmother and the kindly brothel madame.

And Ms. Brooks, ah...she can even make the simple act of drinking liquer out of a glass look deliriously fetching and artlessly natural at the same time. I must say, after not being all that taken with oft cited past candidates for most lovely screen actresses of all time (including Gene Tierney, Rita Hayworth, and Hedy Lamarr), I think I have found the face that launched my thousand ships. But really, it's also a very good movie.:)

Bittersweet and tragic
"Diary of a Lost Girl" (1929) shows us Louise Brooks at her best. It is the bittersweet tale of a young girl's loss of innocence. The new score by Joseph Turrin truly matches this sentimental film by G.W. Pabst , his second best known silent feature after "Pandora's Box" (1928). There are various close ups of Brooks which demonstrate that she was not only a talented actress, but a true vision of beauty. Her face is absolutely flawless. Buy this movie today on DVD, you will not regret it. The DVD also contains the eighteen minute movie short, " Windy Riley Goes to Hollywood", where one can hear Louise Brooks talk! This was directed by Roscoe " Fatty" Arbuckle under an assumed name.Arbuckle's life and career were devasted by a scandal in the early 1920's, he died not long after making this film short.
Also highly recommended is of course, "Pandora's Box" also starring the lovely Louise Brooks. ... Read more

Amazon.com

A young Frenchwoman (Edith Jehanne) weathers the Russian Revolution, the shooting of her father in the Crimea by Bolsheviks (among them her lover Uno Henning), and a desperate escape to Paris, where she seeks work at her eccentric uncle's detective agency. Her heart soars when her lover (he didn't actually, personally kill her father) comes to France to organize the sailors of Toulon. But he and she are soon caught up in feverish subplots involving a slimy Russian expatriate (the amazingly ratlike Fritz Rasp); a blond, blind girl pure of heart but dim of brain (Metropolis's Birgitte Helm); a missing diamond (case solved in a manner that must be seen to be disbelieved); and the same diamond going missing again--after a memorably grotesque murder.

No, the plot of The Love of Jeanne Ney doesn't bear scrutiny, but that only frees you to scrutinize G.W. Pabst's images instead. The director planned every shot with great particularity, composing the film on the principle of constant motion--of the actors and the action, but also the camera, which nervously seeks out visible clues to the characters' inner states (a previous Pabst film had been titled Secrets of a Soul). Pabst was fundamentally a realist, unlike his rivals Fritz Lang and F.W. Murnau; consequently, his movies don't look nearly as "Germanic" as theirs--and except for his legendary collaborations with Louise Brooks, Pandora's Box (1929) and Diary of a Lost Girl (1929), they haven't been seen much. Jeanne Ney marks a good opportunity to start reversing this neglect. --Richard T. Jameson ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Sophisticated and glorious love story
"The Love of Jeanne Ney" is a glorious complex love and suspense story that has murder, politics, one loved one responsible for the death of another, and a hateful scoundrel. Jeanne Ney is the daughter of a man stationed in Russia immediately prior to the Bolshevik revolution. Before he can effect their return to Paris, her young lover and a comrade confront him over a list of Bolshevik leaders and her Father is killed in a gunfight. There are many great characters, from the conman who sold the worthless set of names to her Father, to the kindly official who tries to ease her pain after her Father's death, and on to her mercenary uncle and blind cousin in Paris. The cinematography is gorgeous and inventive, the street scenes are magnificently detailed, and the screenplay by Ilya Ehrenberg is outstanding.

Pabst's Masterpiece
The laserdisc version released by Image as part of the "Golden Age of German Cinema" box set was excellent, given the age of the film. I assume that this will be the same release. The new score by Timothy Brock performed by the Olympia Chamber Orchestra is also excellent. His scores for Faust, Sunrise, Nanook of the North and The Last Laugh are also worth checking out. Most of them are available on CD here at Amazon.

Now if they would only release Pabst's other masterpieces

on DVD (Pandora's Box, Diary of a Lost Girl)!! ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Fritz Lang's eye-popping, futuristic vision from 1926 is still exciting today, the story of a dehumanizing society where machines matter more than people and the rich thoroughly exploit workers. Lang's trademark tone of paranoia is at fever pitch, though the film--really a spectacular sci-fi piece--lacks the subtlety of his greater works (M, Man Hunt) in portraying our destinies as a prison. The more spooky and magical moments, however, are still hard to beat for their oh-wow factor. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (139)

A new perspective on the release debate..
Metropolis is a brilliant piece of work. I'll say this up front to get it out of the way: I haven't seen the DVD, but I understand the arguments; I have a slightly different opinion. Most people absolutely adore the Moroder release of Metropolis, with the tinted scenes and the modern (for the 80's) soundtrack... but I personally found it atrocious. The quality was great, don't get me wrong.. but when I think of the imagery in this film, I don't think of Bonnie Tyler and Queen. I do, however, admire the effort. I definitely agree with putting modern scores with silent films, this one just didn't work for me.

That said, I've noticed a lot of people dissatisfied with the music on several releases.. I'm a bit of a fan of the silent films.. I have yet to see one with a decent soundtrack. If I see one more 'Nosferatu' with a blaring organ score I swear I'll vomit; and don't even get me started on the 1990 version of Phantom of the Opera with score by Rick Wakeman. But I am a big fan of the films, so this is how I've managed to get past the horrible music without watching them silently. Find a CD that reflects the ideas and atmosphere you feel to be present in Metropolis, and let it play while you watch the film.

I have one of the many 115-minute versions, and the image quality is a bit rough, but that doesn't really bother me.. I've always seen Metropolis as an Industrial film anyway. The rough quality just adds to it for me (granted, I have seen versions of this too rough to watch). For that reason, I chose Nine Inch Nails' "The Fragile" as the score for Metropolis.. it works very well with my release.. some memorable moments (if you try this, you may not get these exact moments with the different releases) are the "Moloch" scene when Freder sees the machine explode .. the workers gather their injured and dead as Trent Reznor screams the lyrics "Now you know - this is what it feels like" - and the first scene between Freder and Maria .. Freder kneeling at her feet, in a sort of rapture.. while Trent sings "I will take my place in the great below" .. that song (and the first disc of "The Fragile") ends as Freder kisses Maria's hand and walks away.. But I won't give away all the quirks. Anyway, that's the score that works for me.. both discs of the Fragile and the first two tracks of "Further Down The Spiral" at the end, since The Fragile isn't quite 115 minutes long.

But anyway, having said all that, if you saw Metropolis and didn't like it because of the quality or soundtrack or just because it was boring, try again, and make your own score. Most people who think they don't like silent films simply don't like the music, or the silence. This is understandable.. in silent films the score is 75% of the atmosphere. Use music that you know, that you like.. music that will set the mood for horror if you're watching "Phantom" or "Nosferatu," or for Industrial SciFi if you're watching "Metropolis." I think you'll get a lot more out of the genre that way.

Film History. A masterpiece of cinema.
Metropolis is a landmark of all the films produced in history. Not only is the silent film entertaining, it provides an insight on prejudice and the division of different societies. Just think, this bias was still going on in the movie, set way after Martin Luther King passed away. Parts of the film may be disturbing, since it is very realistic, and could occur in the earth's later years.
However, there are many different versions released on this film. I have also heard that the Madacy DVD is terrible. True, the movie is over 75 years old, but Madacy spends so little time in putting a convenient quality transfer to their products. The tinted version by Morodor is supposed to be superior to the Madacy AND Allied Artists Releases. I own two VHS versions, and will not risk hunting for a good quality DVD. One version is a clean, sensational print, and this is Kino Video. BUY THIS VERSION AT ALL COSTS! Title cards were even inserted into the missing scenes to tell what is happening. The other VHS version is-- well, it could use some shaping up. This version is by Timeless Video Classics, and is much shorter than the Kino release. The quality is mediocre, and the print is very dirty and washed out in many areas. There are also several master tape dropouts. The title of the film reads "METROPOLI". All the other copies released besides the Kino version probably contain this shabby print.
To appreciate Metropolis and it's action in full glory, buy the Kino video or, better yet, the DVD. Since this is an excellent movie to be watched by critics and moviegoers alike, get the very BEST movie version on the market, and enjoy!

A Great film,BEWARE OF PUBLIC DOMAIN VERSIONS!
"Metropolis",Fritz Lang's 1927 silent masterpiece,is one of the most important films ever made and also a great one! But over the years,this film has been reedited,recut,and shortened which ruins the exact vision of an extrordinary filmmaker.Since its stay on the Public Domain shelf,the prints and image quality have over the years been poor.I DO NOT recommend the following versions:1.the Goodtimes Video release has poor image quality and even worse,NO MUSICAL SCORE! 2.The now-notorious Madacy DVD, which is about 5 times as worse as the Goodtimes video release,contains horrible,blurry image quality,freeze-frame opening titles,and an annoying musical score! Just recently,TCM (Turner Classic Movies) has broadcast the brand-new,beautifully restored 2002 restoration of "Metropolis" which I taped off of and trust me,it's well worth it! Buy the Kino restored version on either VHS or DVD,but DO NOT buy the horrible Public Domain versions which can definitely rip you off! A Terrific film and thanks to Kino for making this restored version a definite must-see! I also recommend the 1984 rerelease by Giorgio Moroder (which is now unfortunately out-of-print)and buy the soundtrack to go with it!

Historical Masterpiece, Terrible DVD
I never saw Metropolis except for small sections referenced by other films. It always appealed to me and I finally took a risk buying this used for cheap. Even at an inexpensive price I'd strongly advise to skip this version.

As others have noted the trasfer is terrible, the music is good but sound quality is terrible too. Having watched this version of Metropolis I was able to get some kind of plot out of it and even with the poor film transfer the imagry is at times stunning.

Here's my advice; if you just have to see Metropolis and do not want to pay the substantially high price of the Kino version buy this copy, but understand...and please take my word on this as I'm one of the people that made a similar decision, know that you are getting poor quality all around.

Whether this will ruin the film's experience for you has more to do with your aesthetics. Metropolis has major historical importance and watching it I could see where other favorite dystopian films liberally borrowed ideas. In the end it was acceptable for the price I paid. I would not buy this new and would cough up the extra money and get the Kino version if buying it new. I will be purchasing the latest DVD eventually just to be able to enjoy the superior quality.

5 stars for the film being wonderful 0 stars for the quality. The average would be 2.5 and although it's a great film Metropolis is gutted by this poor DVD. When reading reviews it is easy to take it personal, that a poor review of the DVD (a product) in some way says something negative towards the film on it. In this review the quality of the film is the only reason more than one star was given.

My last parting shot...
The reason I even bothered with the Mandacy product was because so many negative reviews on Amazon have been baseless or inane one line insults I have become numb to them. Take it from a usually easy to please reviewer. Stay away from this DVD.

GREAT Movie - Poor DVD!
METROPOLIS is in simple words a classic long in the making, and probably a major inspiration for George Lucas' STAR WARS films, and many other major science-fiction films to be decades later from its' initial release in 1926. Film also works as a major triumph of human relations with the idea of slavery workers, and rebelling against greater authority. Plus what can go wrong when power falls into the wrong hands. Rudolf Klein-Rogge's Rotwang is an unforgettable character, and the creation of the robot scene is still an eye-filler even long before CG effects technology some 60 years later.

The DVD quality is poor however, as the color contrast is lacking from the color contrast from the original negatives seen on VHS releases. The trivia sections are nice, but what is missing is an audio commentary, or any existence history of the making of the film which should prove very interesting. I'm sure it won't be long before such a version comes to be.

TRIVIA: Brigitte Helm was one of James Whale's choices to play the Monster's Mate in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN before Elsa Lanchester got the part. ... Read more

Reviews (139)

A new perspective on the release debate..
Metropolis is a brilliant piece of work. I'll say this up front to get it out of the way: I haven't seen the DVD, but I understand the arguments; I have a slightly different opinion. Most people absolutely adore the Moroder release of Metropolis, with the tinted scenes and the modern (for the 80's) soundtrack... but I personally found it atrocious. The quality was great, don't get me wrong.. but when I think of the imagery in this film, I don't think of Bonnie Tyler and Queen. I do, however, admire the effort. I definitely agree with putting modern scores with silent films, this one just didn't work for me.

That said, I've noticed a lot of people dissatisfied with the music on several releases.. I'm a bit of a fan of the silent films.. I have yet to see one with a decent soundtrack. If I see one more 'Nosferatu' with a blaring organ score I swear I'll vomit; and don't even get me started on the 1990 version of Phantom of the Opera with score by Rick Wakeman. But I am a big fan of the films, so this is how I've managed to get past the horrible music without watching them silently. Find a CD that reflects the ideas and atmosphere you feel to be present in Metropolis, and let it play while you watch the film.

I have one of the many 115-minute versions, and the image quality is a bit rough, but that doesn't really bother me.. I've always seen Metropolis as an Industrial film anyway. The rough quality just adds to it for me (granted, I have seen versions of this too rough to watch). For that reason, I chose Nine Inch Nails' "The Fragile" as the score for Metropolis.. it works very well with my release.. some memorable moments (if you try this, you may not get these exact moments with the different releases) are the "Moloch" scene when Freder sees the machine explode .. the workers gather their injured and dead as Trent Reznor screams the lyrics "Now you know - this is what it feels like" - and the first scene between Freder and Maria .. Freder kneeling at her feet, in a sort of rapture.. while Trent sings "I will take my place in the great below" .. that song (and the first disc of "The Fragile") ends as Freder kisses Maria's hand and walks away.. But I won't give away all the quirks. Anyway, that's the score that works for me.. both discs of the Fragile and the first two tracks of "Further Down The Spiral" at the end, since The Fragile isn't quite 115 minutes long.

But anyway, having said all that, if you saw Metropolis and didn't like it because of the quality or soundtrack or just because it was boring, try again, and make your own score. Most people who think they don't like silent films simply don't like the music, or the silence. This is understandable.. in silent films the score is 75% of the atmosphere. Use music that you know, that you like.. music that will set the mood for horror if you're watching "Phantom" or "Nosferatu," or for Industrial SciFi if you're watching "Metropolis." I think you'll get a lot more out of the genre that way.

Film History. A masterpiece of cinema.
Metropolis is a landmark of all the films produced in history. Not only is the silent film entertaining, it provides an insight on prejudice and the division of different societies. Just think, this bias was still going on in the movie, set way after Martin Luther King passed away. Parts of the film may be disturbing, since it is very realistic, and could occur in the earth's later years.
However, there are many different versions released on this film. I have also heard that the Madacy DVD is terrible. True, the movie is over 75 years old, but Madacy spends so little time in putting a convenient quality transfer to their products. The tinted version by Morodor is supposed to be superior to the Madacy AND Allied Artists Releases. I own two VHS versions, and will not risk hunting for a good quality DVD. One version is a clean, sensational print, and this is Kino Video. BUY THIS VERSION AT ALL COSTS! Title cards were even inserted into the missing scenes to tell what is happening. The other VHS version is-- well, it could use some shaping up. This version is by Timeless Video Classics, and is much shorter than the Kino release. The quality is mediocre, and the print is very dirty and washed out in many areas. There are also several master tape dropouts. The title of the film reads "METROPOLI". All the other copies released besides the Kino version probably contain this shabby print.
To appreciate Metropolis and it's action in full glory, buy the Kino video or, better yet, the DVD. Since this is an excellent movie to be watched by critics and moviegoers alike, get the very BEST movie version on the market, and enjoy!

A Great film,BEWARE OF PUBLIC DOMAIN VERSIONS!
"Metropolis",Fritz Lang's 1927 silent masterpiece,is one of the most important films ever made and also a great one! But over the years,this film has been reedited,recut,and shortened which ruins the exact vision of an extrordinary filmmaker.Since its stay on the Public Domain shelf,the prints and image quality have over the years been poor.I DO NOT recommend the following versions:1.the Goodtimes Video release has poor image quality and even worse,NO MUSICAL SCORE! 2.The now-notorious Madacy DVD, which is about 5 times as worse as the Goodtimes video release,contains horrible,blurry image quality,freeze-frame opening titles,and an annoying musical score! Just recently,TCM (Turner Classic Movies) has broadcast the brand-new,beautifully restored 2002 restoration of "Metropolis" which I taped off of and trust me,it's well worth it! Buy the Kino restored version on either VHS or DVD,but DO NOT buy the horrible Public Domain versions which can definitely rip you off! A Terrific film and thanks to Kino for making this restored version a definite must-see! I also recommend the 1984 rerelease by Giorgio Moroder (which is now unfortunately out-of-print)and buy the soundtrack to go with it!

Historical Masterpiece, Terrible DVD
I never saw Metropolis except for small sections referenced by other films. It always appealed to me and I finally took a risk buying this used for cheap. Even at an inexpensive price I'd strongly advise to skip this version.

As others have noted the trasfer is terrible, the music is good but sound quality is terrible too. Having watched this version of Metropolis I was able to get some kind of plot out of it and even with the poor film transfer the imagry is at times stunning.

Here's my advice; if you just have to see Metropolis and do not want to pay the substantially high price of the Kino version buy this copy, but understand...and please take my word on this as I'm one of the people that made a similar decision, know that you are getting poor quality all around.

Whether this will ruin the film's experience for you has more to do with your aesthetics. Metropolis has major historical importance and watching it I could see where other favorite dystopian films liberally borrowed ideas. In the end it was acceptable for the price I paid. I would not buy this new and would cough up the extra money and get the Kino version if buying it new. I will be purchasing the latest DVD eventually just to be able to enjoy the superior quality.

5 stars for the film being wonderful 0 stars for the quality. The average would be 2.5 and although it's a great film Metropolis is gutted by this poor DVD. When reading reviews it is easy to take it personal, that a poor review of the DVD (a product) in some way says something negative towards the film on it. In this review the quality of the film is the only reason more than one star was given.

My last parting shot...
The reason I even bothered with the Mandacy product was because so many negative reviews on Amazon have been baseless or inane one line insults I have become numb to them. Take it from a usually easy to please reviewer. Stay away from this DVD.

GREAT Movie - Poor DVD!
METROPOLIS is in simple words a classic long in the making, and probably a major inspiration for George Lucas' STAR WARS films, and many other major science-fiction films to be decades later from its' initial release in 1926. Film also works as a major triumph of human relations with the idea of slavery workers, and rebelling against greater authority. Plus what can go wrong when power falls into the wrong hands. Rudolf Klein-Rogge's Rotwang is an unforgettable character, and the creation of the robot scene is still an eye-filler even long before CG effects technology some 60 years later.

The DVD quality is poor however, as the color contrast is lacking from the color contrast from the original negatives seen on VHS releases. The trivia sections are nice, but what is missing is an audio commentary, or any existence history of the making of the film which should prove very interesting. I'm sure it won't be long before such a version comes to be.

TRIVIA: Brigitte Helm was one of James Whale's choices to play the Monster's Mate in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN before Elsa Lanchester got the part. ... Read more

Reviews (139)

A new perspective on the release debate..
Metropolis is a brilliant piece of work. I'll say this up front to get it out of the way: I haven't seen the DVD, but I understand the arguments; I have a slightly different opinion. Most people absolutely adore the Moroder release of Metropolis, with the tinted scenes and the modern (for the 80's) soundtrack... but I personally found it atrocious. The quality was great, don't get me wrong.. but when I think of the imagery in this film, I don't think of Bonnie Tyler and Queen. I do, however, admire the effort. I definitely agree with putting modern scores with silent films, this one just didn't work for me.

That said, I've noticed a lot of people dissatisfied with the music on several releases.. I'm a bit of a fan of the silent films.. I have yet to see one with a decent soundtrack. If I see one more 'Nosferatu' with a blaring organ score I swear I'll vomit; and don't even get me started on the 1990 version of Phantom of the Opera with score by Rick Wakeman. But I am a big fan of the films, so this is how I've managed to get past the horrible music without watching them silently. Find a CD that reflects the ideas and atmosphere you feel to be present in Metropolis, and let it play while you watch the film.

I have one of the many 115-minute versions, and the image quality is a bit rough, but that doesn't really bother me.. I've always seen Metropolis as an Industrial film anyway. The rough quality just adds to it for me (granted, I have seen versions of this too rough to watch). For that reason, I chose Nine Inch Nails' "The Fragile" as the score for Metropolis.. it works very well with my release.. some memorable moments (if you try this, you may not get these exact moments with the different releases) are the "Moloch" scene when Freder sees the machine explode .. the workers gather their injured and dead as Trent Reznor screams the lyrics "Now you know - this is what it feels like" - and the first scene between Freder and Maria .. Freder kneeling at her feet, in a sort of rapture.. while Trent sings "I will take my place in the great below" .. that song (and the first disc of "The Fragile") ends as Freder kisses Maria's hand and walks away.. But I won't give away all the quirks. Anyway, that's the score that works for me.. both discs of the Fragile and the first two tracks of "Further Down The Spiral" at the end, since The Fragile isn't quite 115 minutes long.

But anyway, having said all that, if you saw Metropolis and didn't like it because of the quality or soundtrack or just because it was boring, try again, and make your own score. Most people who think they don't like silent films simply don't like the music, or the silence. This is understandable.. in silent films the score is 75% of the atmosphere. Use music that you know, that you like.. music that will set the mood for horror if you're watching "Phantom" or "Nosferatu," or for Industrial SciFi if you're watching "Metropolis." I think you'll get a lot more out of the genre that way.

Film History. A masterpiece of cinema.
Metropolis is a landmark of all the films produced in history. Not only is the silent film entertaining, it provides an insight on prejudice and the division of different societies. Just think, this bias was still going on in the movie, set way after Martin Luther King passed away. Parts of the film may be disturbing, since it is very realistic, and could occur in the earth's later years.
However, there are many different versions released on this film. I have also heard that the Madacy DVD is terrible. True, the movie is over 75 years old, but Madacy spends so little time in putting a convenient quality transfer to their products. The tinted version by Morodor is supposed to be superior to the Madacy AND Allied Artists Releases. I own two VHS versions, and will not risk hunting for a good quality DVD. One version is a clean, sensational print, and this is Kino Video. BUY THIS VERSION AT ALL COSTS! Title cards were even inserted into the missing scenes to tell what is happening. The other VHS version is-- well, it could use some shaping up. This version is by Timeless Video Classics, and is much shorter than the Kino release. The quality is mediocre, and the print is very dirty and washed out in many areas. There are also several master tape dropouts. The title of the film reads "METROPOLI". All the other copies released besides the Kino version probably contain this shabby print.
To appreciate Metropolis and it's action in full glory, buy the Kino video or, better yet, the DVD. Since this is an excellent movie to be watched by critics and moviegoers alike, get the very BEST movie version on the market, and enjoy!

A Great film,BEWARE OF PUBLIC DOMAIN VERSIONS!
"Metropolis",Fritz Lang's 1927 silent masterpiece,is one of the most important films ever made and also a great one! But over the years,this film has been reedited,recut,and shortened which ruins the exact vision of an extrordinary filmmaker.Since its stay on the Public Domain shelf,the prints and image quality have over the years been poor.I DO NOT recommend the following versions:1.the Goodtimes Video release has poor image quality and even worse,NO MUSICAL SCORE! 2.The now-notorious Madacy DVD, which is about 5 times as worse as the Goodtimes video release,contains horrible,blurry image quality,freeze-frame opening titles,and an annoying musical score! Just recently,TCM (Turner Classic Movies) has broadcast the brand-new,beautifully restored 2002 restoration of "Metropolis" which I taped off of and trust me,it's well worth it! Buy the Kino restored version on either VHS or DVD,but DO NOT buy the horrible Public Domain versions which can definitely rip you off! A Terrific film and thanks to Kino for making this restored version a definite must-see! I also recommend the 1984 rerelease by Giorgio Moroder (which is now unfortunately out-of-print)and buy the soundtrack to go with it!

Historical Masterpiece, Terrible DVD
I never saw Metropolis except for small sections referenced by other films. It always appealed to me and I finally took a risk buying this used for cheap. Even at an inexpensive price I'd strongly advise to skip this version.

As others have noted the trasfer is terrible, the music is good but sound quality is terrible too. Having watched this version of Metropolis I was able to get some kind of plot out of it and even with the poor film transfer the imagry is at times stunning.

Here's my advice; if you just have to see Metropolis and do not want to pay the substantially high price of the Kino version buy this copy, but understand...and please take my word on this as I'm one of the people that made a similar decision, know that you are getting poor quality all around.

Whether this will ruin the film's experience for you has more to do with your aesthetics. Metropolis has major historical importance and watching it I could see where other favorite dystopian films liberally borrowed ideas. In the end it was acceptable for the price I paid. I would not buy this new and would cough up the extra money and get the Kino version if buying it new. I will be purchasing the latest DVD eventually just to be able to enjoy the superior quality.

5 stars for the film being wonderful 0 stars for the quality. The average would be 2.5 and although it's a great film Metropolis is gutted by this poor DVD. When reading reviews it is easy to take it personal, that a poor review of the DVD (a product) in some way says something negative towards the film on it. In this review the quality of the film is the only reason more than one star was given.

My last parting shot...
The reason I even bothered with the Mandacy product was because so many negative reviews on Amazon have been baseless or inane one line insults I have become numb to them. Take it from a usually easy to please reviewer. Stay away from this DVD.

GREAT Movie - Poor DVD!
METROPOLIS is in simple words a classic long in the making, and probably a major inspiration for George Lucas' STAR WARS films, and many other major science-fiction films to be decades later from its' initial release in 1926. Film also works as a major triumph of human relations with the idea of slavery workers, and rebelling against greater authority. Plus what can go wrong when power falls into the wrong hands. Rudolf Klein-Rogge's Rotwang is an unforgettable character, and the creation of the robot scene is still an eye-filler even long before CG effects technology some 60 years later.

The DVD quality is poor however, as the color contrast is lacking from the color contrast from the original negatives seen on VHS releases. The trivia sections are nice, but what is missing is an audio commentary, or any existence history of the making of the film which should prove very interesting. I'm sure it won't be long before such a version comes to be.

TRIVIA: Brigitte Helm was one of James Whale's choices to play the Monster's Mate in BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN before Elsa Lanchester got the part. ... Read more

Reviews (139)

A new perspective on the release debate..
Metropolis is a brilliant piece of work. I'll say this up front to get it out of the way: I haven't seen the DVD, but I understand the arguments; I have a slightly different opinion. Most people absolutely adore the Moroder release of Metropolis, with the tinted scenes and the modern (for the 80's) soundtrack... but I personally found it atrocious. The quality was great, don't get me wrong.. but when I think of the imagery in this film, I don't think of Bonnie Tyler and Queen. I do, however, admire the effort. I definitely agree with putting modern scores with silent films, this one just didn't work for me.

That said, I've noticed a lot of people dissatisfied with the music on several releases.. I'm a bit of a fan of the silent films.. I have yet to see one with a decent soundtrack. If I see one more 'Nosferatu' with a blaring organ score I swear I'll vomit; and don't even get me started on the 1990 version of Phantom of the Opera with score by Rick Wakeman. But I am a big fan of the films, so this is how I've managed to get past the horrible music without watching them silently. Find a CD that reflects the ideas and atmosphere you feel to be present in Metropolis, and let it play while you watch the film.

I have one of the many 115-minute versions, and the image quality is a bit rough, but that doesn't really bother me.. I've always seen Metropolis as an Industrial film anyway. The rough quality just adds to it for me (granted, I have seen versions of this too rough to watch). For that reason, I chose Nine Inch Nails' "The Fragile" as the score for Metropolis.. it works very well with my release.. some memorable moments (if you try this, you may not get these exact moments with the different releases) are the "Moloch" scene when Freder sees the machine explode .. the workers gather their injured and dead as Trent Reznor screams the lyrics "Now you know - this is what it feels like" - and the first scene between Freder and Maria .. Freder kneeling at her feet, in a sort of rapture.. while Trent sings "I will take my place in the great below" .. that song (and the first disc of "The Fragile") ends as Freder kisses Maria's hand and walks away.. But I won't give away all the quirks. Anyway, that's the score that works for me.. both discs of the Fragile and the first two tracks of "Further Down The Spiral" at the end, since The Fragile isn't quite 115 minutes long.

But anyway, having said all that, if you saw Metropolis and didn't like it because of the quality or soundtrack or just because it was boring, try again, and make your own