Metropolis
1927, NR, 147 min.
D: Fritz Lang.

One of the great silent classics, Metropolis is a futuristic fantasy about the mechanization of society. The new print of this true cinema classic restores nearly a half hour of footage that was removed from Lang’s original cut in 1927. Although various other versions have been released over the years, this 75th anniversary print is the closest we’ll ever get to Lang’s two-and-a-half-hour original. Also included on the soundtrack of this print is the original score composed for the movie by Gottfried Huppertz, now re-recorded by a 65-piece orchestra. (For more info see austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2002-08-23/screens_feature.html.)

This article appears in May 10 • 2002.

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Marjorie Baumgarten is a film critic and contributing writer at The Austin Chronicle, where she has worked in many capacities since the paper's founding in 1981. She served as the Chronicle's Film Reviews editor for 25 years.