"You're no mere human being, ruled by emotion and feeling, torn between morality and love!"
History
First off, the only thing
Metropolis (2001) shares with
Metropolis (1927) by Fritz Lang is the idea of a heavily industrialized city with synthetic life that parallels the biblical tale of the Tower of Babel. From that starting point they split off into very different works and directions so please do not look at this film as an "anime version of 1927's Metropolis". It is so much more than that and pioneers its own path despite having an initially similar setting and sharing a title.
This work is a collaboration between Katsuhiro Ôtomo (writer of both the manga and film versions of Akira (1988) ) and Osamu Tezuka (creator of Astro Boy and Kimba the White Lion). The original manga by Tezuka was a one off single volume story seemingly inspired by Fritz Lang's Metropolis, and released 22 years later in September of 1949. This single volume manga was then adapted into a full screenplay by Ôtomo and more fleshed out in its themes and setting for the big screen.
Analysis
The history of this piece is important to understand because I was very confused by the childlike looking character designs that seemed to clash with the heavily detailed and sharp background art. These character designs are largely from Tezuka, that has been referred to as the Walt Disney of Japan. It would make sense that his designs would fit into a similar style to the rubber hose animation of that era. Given the timeline of the source material and the background on the artist I was able to piece together the reasoning behind the unique character designs.
The art style seemed to clash for the first half of the film. These childlike and exaggerated characters did not feel serious enough for the situations they were meant to represent, especially during the more violent and intense moments. I felt this dissonance all the way until the climax and it finally clicked for me the reasoning behind these choices. These simple and rounded characters were meant to stand out from the grotesque and threatening machinery of the city. Even the cleaning robots were friendly in appearance because they were not a threat to humanity like the mindless, faceless human extinction devices toward the end. Despite feeling like the design choices detracted from the story to begin with, I think these choices are integral to convey the message the writers were intending and do so very effectively.
I also have to mention the soundtrack. The finale has to be one of my favorite soundtrack choice moments in film. Absolutely incredible.
Complaints
The character motivations and backstories are underdeveloped and completely absent in most cases. The story wanders for the first half of the film with no clear direction except longer exposure and deeper exploration of its visual setting. The politics are unclear and unexplored in favor of a power hungry and single-minded villain. With all of these complaints, I think most are forgiven because the film seems to be intended for a mature, but younger audience. The themes do not go quite as deep as I would have liked, but if targeted for an intelligent young audience I consider this film more than adequate thematically.
Conclusion
Overall
Metropolis (2001) is a visual feast that is made around its fantastic conclusion. Without getting in to spoiler territory, given the climax and resolution, all the meandering and exploration in the first half is much more justified and appreciated in retrospect. I'd definitely recommend this, and encourage you to not give up hope half way through like I almost did. Well worth the time invested.
