Analysis Of Fritz Lang s Metropolis And The Garden...

There is a lot to be said about Fritz Lang’s Metropolis, as it has many overlapping themes. There is the theme of humans becoming as replaceable as machines. It has a theme of class division which leads to a Marxist type revolution. The theme I want to focus on in this paper however, is the religious themes and symbolism that are prevalent throughout the film, as I feel they are the most prominent. Metropolis makes a lot of calls to Judeo-Christian religions and biblical stories, using its storytelling method, characterization, and visuals. The story begins with the main character, Freder, in a lush garden surrounded by a harem of beautiful and scantily clad women. This scene was likened to the Garden of Eden by Jerold J. Abrams in The†¦show more content†¦He stands with his arms spread out as he looks up to the sky and pleas to his father to take him out of his misery (â€Å"Father! Will ten hours never end?†) (163-4). Freder and Maria--the two â€Å"angelic† figures in the movie--also appear to be the only ones who recognize the workers as people and not parts, and they go about treating them as such. Rutsky also suggests that Freder being a metaphorical Christ in the world of the film, may have a lot to do with the film’s controversial ending--but I will talk about that in a moment. Meanwhile, Freder’s father is the owner of the city and the one who oversees everything that goes on. He makes attempts to â€Å"play God† by changing conditions and controlling everything that happens in the city. Both Abrams and Kang point out that Joh--the father’s name--bears resemblance to â€Å"Jehovah.† (Though Joh does not represent Christ in the world of the film.) Even the tower that he sits in is called the New Tower of Babel. During the catacomb scene where Maria is teaching about the old Tower of Babel, which was destroyed by God and thus dividing people by language barriers. The New Tower of Babel represents a new form of division (working class vs. high class), and foreshadows its eventual downfall (Abrams 167). Maria is eventually kidnapped and her face is used for a robot being commissioned by Joh as a way to dominate the workers who are planning an uprising. Maria’s doppelganger takes on the biblical role of the â€Å"whore of