Fritz Lang's movie "Metropolis" was filmed in Germany in 1926. It is a dystopian film portraying a horribly polarized future society where the working class is made to toil endlessly, in stark contrast to the ruling class, i.e. the upper class, who live the life of luxury, high up in towers, looking down on the overpopulated city below. The idea of a futuristic dystopian society was nothing new in the 1920s. What dazzled the cinema-going population of the time was the futuristic methods employed by Lang. In this essay, I intend to examine whether the secret to Metropolis' great success is to be found in its modern filming style or in the actual content. First, however, I believe that it is important to examine the life and inspirations of Fritz Lang.
             Lang was born in Vienna in 1890 and was half Catholic and half Jewish. Having fought in the First World War, Lang was forced to leave Germany in 1933 following the Nazis' rise to power, fleeing to Paris and then Hollywood, where he continued his work. Lang is generally viewed as the most important filmmaker of the Expressionist era. His work has proved to be a source of inspiration for future generations of film directors. Metropolis is set 100 years into the future from when the film was shot (2026). A young man named Freder, who is the son of Joh Frederson, the ruler of the gigantic city of Metropolis, chases after a girl named Maria and finds himself in a machine room in the lower city. He witnesses an accident at one of the large machines and sees the machine as a demonic beast. Having witnessed this accident, he feels that it is his duty to inform his father of what he has seen. His Father is indifferent to his son's reaction, choosing to ignore what he has been told. Freder, however, feels guilty, and decides that he must help the workers to escape their plight. In the meantime, Joh Frederson meets with the mad inventor Rotwang. Rotwang shows him his latest invention, a robot that...