Metropolis

Rating:
Summary: The essential companion to the film!
Review: Thea von Harbou's book is the indispensable companion to Fritz Lang's immortal film. As most people know, Lang's film was butchered by German and American editors-we have lost about 25% of the film. Essential scenes and many of the subplots were deleted to make it fit within a small time frame. Reality Check: The shorter the film, the more times they can show it, and the more money they collect. Consequently, with the best of restorations, we are seeing a film with as many gaps as a hockey player's smile.

This book, which was serially published before the film's release, fills in the gaps. You get a better sense of the story that Lang and von Harbou are trying the tell. The book allows you to get inside the heads of Freder and co. in a way that the film does not allow. You get a stronger feel for the dystopic milieu that Freder fixes.

This story is essentially mythic, so devotees of Joseph Campbell, George Lucas, and James N. Frey will devour the book and the film. You see the messianic and redemptive elements that makes this story so enduring. This story is one of my favorites, and rates with anything C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkein wrote, although not with the same level of craftsmanship.

This particular edition is the 75th anniversary edition. It includes an introductory essay by Forrest J. Ackerman, a Metropolis aficionado. It is illustrated with a few movie sills, and several movie posters from German and American screenings. These illustration selection could have been better, and for crying out loud, next time please do not put the pictures in sideways!

The only drawback with this book is the size-it is 8 ½ by 11, as opposed to the normal novel-book size of 7 by 4. It is awkward to read and hold. It feels in my hands more like a coffee-table picture book than a novel. So it is a little hard to read in this fashion. The translation, however, is readable, and doesn't have an "Germanisms."

I'm not sure if this book "stands alone" apart from the film. It wasn't conceived as such, but was more of a segway for the film. However, the story or the "feel" of the times and perplexities of the dystopic Metropolis. In this sense, the book achieves it's purpous.

Anything that lasts 75 years is worth investigating. I love film and am glad that I own the novel so doubles my cinematic pleasure.

Rating:
Summary: The essential companion to the film!
Review: Thea von Harbou's book is the indispensable companion to Fritz Lang's immortal film. As most people know, Lang's film was butchered by German and American editors-we have lost about 25% of the film. Essential scenes and many of the subplots were deleted to make it fit within a small time frame. Reality Check: The shorter the film, the more times they can show it, and the more money they collect. Consequently, with the best of restorations, we are seeing a film with as many gaps as a hockey player's smile.

This book, which was serially published before the film's release, fills in the gaps. You get a better sense of the story that Lang and von Harbou are trying the tell. The book allows you to get inside the heads of Freder and co. in a way that the film does not allow. You get a stronger feel for the dystopic milieu that Freder fixes.

This story is essentially mythic, so devotees of Joseph Campbell, George Lucas, and James N. Frey will devour the book and the film. You see the messianic and redemptive elements that makes this story so enduring. This story is one of my favorites, and rates with anything C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkein wrote, although not with the same level of craftsmanship.

This particular edition is the 75th anniversary edition. It includes an introductory essay by Forrest J. Ackerman, a Metropolis aficionado. It is illustrated with a few movie sills, and several movie posters from German and American screenings. These illustration selection could have been better, and for crying out loud, next time please do not put the pictures in sideways!

The only drawback with this book is the size-it is 8 ½ by 11, as opposed to the normal novel-book size of 7 by 4. It is awkward to read and hold. It feels in my hands more like a coffee-table picture book than a novel. So it is a little hard to read in this fashion. The translation, however, is readable, and doesn't have an "Germanisms."

I'm not sure if this book "stands alone" apart from the film. It wasn't conceived as such, but was more of a segway for the film. However, the story or the "feel" of the times and perplexities of the dystopic Metropolis. In this sense, the book achieves it's purpous.

Anything that lasts 75 years is worth investigating. I love film and am glad that I own the novel so doubles my cinematic pleasure.

Rating:
Summary: Improved Scans and printing
Review: This 75th Anniversary edition of Metropolis had been completely re-scanned and the book reprinted on improved presses (as of 10/2002) so that the interior illustrations and quality are much improved. A very nice present for the holidays and a fitting companion to the recently released digital version of the original film.

Rating:
Summary: An opportunity wasted
Review: While it is good to have the novel METROPOLIS available once again, it is a pity the presentation couldn't have been better and more professional. The stills from the film are badly reproduced and look like they went through a poor fax. The posters are in poor black & white instead of color.
In addition, since METROPOLIS is a short novel, it would have been quite easy to add a couple of chapters. One excellent one would have been a reprint of the "Famous Monsters" articles of several decades ago that dealth with the film's special effects. Another article of interest would've been a discussion of the restortation efforts on this film, especially with another restoration to come out this year and, I believe, to be released by Kino Video on DVD next year.

But, no, this was an excellent opportunity wasted by a shoddy presentation.