Metropolis warns us to be wary of the rapid development of machines as they could evolve enough to think for themselves and betray us. Although H.G. Wells criticizes the films middlemen about mechanical progress, there is some truth in the underlying message that
The cautionary advice is depicted throughout the film in the very long aerial shots of The New Tower of Babel. Running the tower of Babel was only possible by building huge machines that would power the city above, hence displaying a large dependence on machines. Similarly, in the present there is a huge reliance on machines to operate tasks which will continue and increase in the future, hence the relevance. When Rotwang is revealing to Joh his robot creation, his rhetorical question Isnt it worth the loss of a hand to have created the man of the future, the Machine Man?! implies the mass industrialization that has led to a breakthrough discovery of robots. However, the close-up shot of the robot fusing with the human Maria reveals a hidden wickedness within the robot as she is instructed by Rotwang to disobey Johs orders and destroy order in the tower.
The dramatic irony of the audience knowing that robot Maria is creating chaos between both social classes displays the immoral control of corruptive technology on humanity. Therefore, the film Metropolis still has a relevant vision of the future as the movie questions the ethics of the speedy progress in technology. Metropoliss vision of the future still largely remains relevant as a result of the distinct class division in society which will only increase. The fi
lm exhibits a disparity of treatment and living conditions between the higher and lower classes, shown at the start of the film by high-angle shots of workers entering the factory with stoic faces and marching robotically. The contrast is depicted in the next scene, the Club of Sons is screened, displaying the elite playing and joking around whilst the workers labor away on the machines to power the elites city. Moreover, the juxtaposition between the uniformity of the workers and robotic movements when operating the machines in comparison to the elites unique dressing styles and individuality dehumanizes the underground workers because of their segregation from the upper class. Similarly, the montage of machinery and workers represents how the workers themselves have been integrated into parts of the machine, hence losing their individualism and humanity. After Freder has swapped identities with Gyorgy, a vignette of flyers advertising the Yoshiwara club fluttering everywhere, girls in fancy club clothing, and Gyorgy clutching his chest wide-eyed reveals his desire to have leisure time. As a result of working ten-hour shifts every day, he has an unbalanced lifestyle and has no time for any pleasures, hence Gyorgy is unable to resist the temptation of going to a nightclub, something that the higher class regularly attends thus revealing the disparity between classes. The point-of-view shot from Freders perspective of Josaphat holding a gun to his head and about to press the trigger insinuates the terrifying extent of being demoted and sent down to the depths with the workers.