Metropolis, the 1927 silent German expressionism science fiction film directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and Thea von Harbou, will show on Friday, September 25, at 7:30 p.m., LH-6.
Produced in Germany during a stable period of the Weimar Republic, Metropolis is set in a futuristic urban dystopia and examines a common science fiction theme of the day: the social crisis between workers and owners in capitalism. The film stars Alfred Abel as the leader of the city, Gustav Fröhlich as his son, who tries to mediate between the elite caste and the workers, Brigitte Helm as both the pure-at-heart worker Maria and the debased robot version of her, and Rudolf Klein-Rogge as the mad scientist who creates the robot.
Metropolis was produced in the Babelsberg Studios by Universum Film A.G. (UFA) and released in 1927. The most expensive film of its time, it cost approximately 7 million Reichsmark to make. The film was cut substantially after its German premiere, and there have been several efforts to restore it, as well as rediscoveries of previously lost footage. The American copyright lapsed in 1953, which eventually led to a proliferation of versions being released on video.
[source: Wikipedia]
Admission is $4.
Sponsor: Harpur Cinema and Harpur College Dean’s Office.
For more information: Call 777-5078 or email jesionow@binghamton.edu. Or visit http://www2.binghamton.edu/cinema/harpur-film.html