****
Visually, this by far surpassed my (very high) expectations. Some films have one or two memorable scenes that immediately strike you as the stuff of cinema history. This one has them in buckets. And it throws them at you, rythmically and consistently, from beginning to end. The Moloch machine, Babel, the lantern chase in the catacombs, the transformation of the mechanical woman, the "whore of Babylon" dance, the moving statues, the legendary use of crowds, Metropolis itself... And the print is incredibly crisp to boot, what a feast for the eyes.
As screen presence, despite my initial misgivings, Brigitte Helm really stands out, particularly for her duality and contorted, psychotic physicality as Fake Maria.
As of the film's obvious weakness, well, its thinnish plot is nothing that hasn't been discussed at length before. A plot that seems rather confused as to (and not really all that concerned with) what exactly it is trying to do; and ceremoniously offers a fairy-tale solution to the heavy issues it seems to raise. The truckloads of inspiration obviously went into the style and not the substance. Sadly, because there's plenty of style here (and of the right kind) to support a whole lot more substance. Many scenes exude sheer visual drama that could have served a more profound cause well.
Admittedly, though, it's better to have it and criticise it than not to have had it at all :).
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