In a world of a mythical and terrible apocalypse, if only one movie survived, if only one movie could be watched over and over, I would hope it would be Fritz Lang's 1927 silent German experimentalist sci-fi classic, Metropolis. I could write a whole dissertation on the film (and sadly I have) so I won't belabor the fact. But if you like Blade Runner, the Matrix films, Star Wars, Lost, the films of Tim Burton, Tron, Robocop, my personal favorite The Fifth Element or nearly every single sci-fi fantasy film/tv show, you owe a huge debt of gratitude to this film as they are all heavily influenced by this monumental and orgasmic creation.
If you've never seen the film or have only seen the truncated "missing" version of the film like everyone else, it's time to rejoice and thank the heavens. Back in 2008 a nearly complete copy of Metropolis was found at the Buenes Aires Museo del Cine (the film museum of Buenes Aires). The found copy contained an additional 25 minutes of lost footage which comprises a fifth of the films original running time. It took nearly a lifetime to find this 147-minute version, so I feel confident in saying that this may be the most complete version of the film that will ever be found.
All this comes to a head at the end of 2010, as Kino releases the dvd and blu-ray version of the newly-restored Metropolis. Not just that, but in celebration of the re-release, Metropolis is hitting theaters in all major markets in the US and Canada. If you live in NY like I do, the film is hitting my favorite spot in NY, The Film Forum starting May 7th. If you live in other cities or want to find out more information about the film and it's re-release check out Kino's site: here.
So as film lovers around the world let out a collective gasp in awe at their good fortune here's a newly released trailer that showcases what we can all expect starting May 7th. If you don't have a smile at the end of the 2-minute trailer, well, there's no saving you. Enjoy.
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