With a number of mediocre sequels and insipid, CGI–ridden genre films on the horizon, it’s no surprise that audiences everywhere are hankering for the original, thought–provoking cinema of yore. Though the studios have yet to recognize their shortcomings, the Philadelphia Film Society and the Friends of the Wanamaker Organ are stepping in and taking viewers back to Hollywood’s Golden Age.
This Saturday, the Macy’s in Center City will be converted into a movie palace with the screening of the 1927 classic Metropolis. Since its release, the science–fiction epic has never quite been displayed as intended: footage was trimmed for the movie’s initial American premiere, and it wasn’t until 2008 that a complete copy of the original film was even discovered.
It’s that most recent version which the Film Society plans to screen, but with its own Philly–based twist. Though Metropolis has a renowned score composed to accompany the silent film, Saturday’s show will make use of the Wanamaker Organ inside Macy’s to present the film with an improvised, singular soundtrack.
Metropolis Saturday, March 19, 8:30 p.m. Macy's, 1300 Market St. $50, filmadelphia.org
