Osamu Tezuka created his manga Metropolis based on a single still from Fritz Lang’s movie in a story in his mother’s film magazine. This movie version matches Lang’s epic for scale, drama and pathos.
Made twelve years after Osamu Tezuka’s death by two of his greatest fans, his protégé Rintaro and Akira creator Katsuhiro Otomo, this film’s dreamlike visual beauty is only part of its attraction. A superb jazz-inspired score and a compelling plot made critic Roger Ebert describe it as 'one of the best animated films I have ever seen'.
The film differs in detail from Tezuka’s original manga, and draws on the overarching concept of Fritz Lang’s film, a dystopian class struggle in which robots are exploited for human gain and used to manipuiate society.
The relationship between robots and humans, and how man treats his creations, was a theme that drew Tezuka back many times; here there is some light at the end of the tunnel of our destructive nature.
Japan 2001 Dir Rintaro 108 min 35mm presentation
Screening in Japanese with English subtitles
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