Film: Metropolis ,1927
Restored
Well, if I
were to stick with the same approach in reading this film as I have in my
previous blogs, I would have to say that Metropolis
just served up an easy hit and run with regards to “good and evil” and analyzing
through a religious point of view with an attempt to make some far-fetched connection,
or in this case a very easy connection; but instead I would like to focus on
something that I believe is much more important to the advancement of the film’s
plot as well as providing more depth to individualizing the characters- the
films score.
Since there
is absolutely no dialogue in this film, the development of character and plot
relies heavily on the music that accompanies each and every shot. The main characters of the film each have a
style of composition that is fairly unique, and this aspect is interwoven into
the overall score as the story progresses.
For instance, when we are first introduced to Maria (score-time: 10:04
exactly) the melody is very light and almost angelic; it flows with ease and has
at the forefront a single flute that complements her soft and innocent entry
into the room. This arrangement gives
the viewer a calming sense of trust in her as she is able to simultaneously attract
the undivided attention of the city’s most eligible bachelor instantly. Conversely,
when we are first introduced to The Master of Metropolis, Joh Fredersen (score-time:
19:07 exactly), the music is very ominous and full, dominated by an aggressive attack
of the bass and tenors of the brass and string orchestral sections. This yields the effect of power, dominance and
maybe even a little fear. The viewer is
supposed to know that he is an authoritative
figure that probably shouldn’t be effed with.
Both of these musical styles that have initially been associated with
these two characters are then utilized and interconnected throughout the
remainder of the films score to compliment the associated action respectively.
The score
aids the viewer in the reading of plot as well.
When the workers destroy the Heart Machine (score-time: ~113:00), as the
resultant chaos ensues the tempo of the music increases and takes on a more
frantic, chaotic, approach with the forefront of the arrangement being
absolutely dominated by partial-step time signatures that produce the effect of
anxiety to the viewer; you are supposed to feel the excitement and thrill of
the workers through the influence of the score.
Then as the elevators begin to collapse (score-time: ~115:33) each crash
is complimented with an abrupt blast from the tuba achieving the effect of grandiose
exhilaration.
Without the synchronized stimuli of
audio and video in this film, it would not impart half the impact that it
currently does. The score lends depth to
characters and understanding to plot that without would make for a very
difficult film to view.
MTG
I strongly agree with you about the music. I guess that's the only thing we could contributes to this movie through our interpretation of music. However, the audio used in this film brings me very unpleasant feeling with the scenes of labors. I see and hear only pressure, suffering and desperation in these scenes. What I feel is that there must be something missing in the music. I feel they are not human anymore because the scenes and music of the labors confirmed the idea I worried about. It seems they have become the heartless robots, without any struggle and hope. This is not coherent with what happened at the end of the movie.
ReplyDeleteI similarly found the use of music in the most recent reconstruction of Metropolis to be fascinating. In the end, it was the discovery of the original music score that enabled the new composers to digest the mountain of footage, as the score meticulously and diligently notated the correlating plot throughout the sheet music. In a sense, music can have profound effects on the viewer’s response in the same manner editing does when considering the Kuleshov effect: just as two shots can give birth to a feeling or idea not present in either shot individually, the music in combination with shots can elicit a feeling idea not present in either individually. Gorgio Moroder plays with this idea in his, to say the least, quirky interpretation of Metropolis backed by 80’s contemporary rock. As strange as bringing Pat Benatar to German Expression may seem on the surface, the cohabitation of the newly realized soundtrack with the original film ultimately has the same aims as the original score in shaping our experience.
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