In scope and cost, Fritz Lang’s dystopian sci-fi epic “Metropolis” was unprecedented for the silent era. The 1927 film continues to enthrall audiences and inspire filmmakers, however, until very recently, we’ve never been able to see it all.
Lang’s distributors, disturbed by the premiere’s lukewarm reception, cut the length of the film by over a third of its original 153-minute running time. Even Lang himself presumed it gone forever, but thanks to a serendipitous 2008 discovery in an Argentinean vault, we now have the most complete version ever.
It makes its way to Brookline’s Coolidge Corner Theatre on Friday; Cambridge’s Alloy Orchestra will provide a live soundtrack for the first screening of “The Sounds of Silence,” a series of musician-accompanied silent screenings.
“We have an air conditioning duct that [we] gently rub a stick on,” explains Alloy’s Terry Donahue. “It sends shivers up the spine.”
