‘Berlin: Symphony of a Great City' is a movie that has been watched by many people for a long time owing to the level of fascination associated with it as well as its informative nature. The movie may not be containing a lot of information about the people living in Berlin, but it is clear that many people from that particular city were featured to a certain extent. The ‘Berlin: Symphony of a Metropolis' displays an extraordinary ability in stimulating and capturing the imagination of the viewers. In this respect, the movie presents a creative technique which is resourceful in many ways ( Hendrykowska, 2013). The images contained in this movie are beautiful, and the technique of photography used brings out beautiful pictures. The involvement of the train in the opening sequence is well-thought and exciting idea in starting a movie.
A realistic but an abstract sensation is created through the rush of images as the pace of the movie picks up. Furthermore, the movie presents a stylized and very interesting image of a typical Berlin. This presentation of this image takes place through various sights and scenes that are carefully selected. The presence of different scenes in this movie as it progresses can offer a coherence to the movie that makes it more appealing to the viewers. Several other scenes and sequences in the film are interesting especially the manner in which everything comes out and together as a package. The movie has a remarkable overall effect to its owing to its content as well as its techniques and styles of presentation. The footage of Berlin, its structures, its residents and on-going activities presents a typical life in Germany during the early nineteenth century. The final act in the movie presents a typical night in Berlin which characterized by lavishness ( Grésillon, 2015).
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The representation of a metropolis by the movie ‘Berlin: Symphony of a Great City' occurs concerning several different dimensions. The description by Loentz (2014) considers a metropolis as a large conurbation or city with a considerable level of significance when it comes to the cultural, political or economic centrality and importance of a particular region or country. Moreover, a metropolis always acts as a crucial hub for national, international or regional connection concerning commerce, connections, and communications. This movie represents a metropolis by portraying the kind of life that is being lived in the city of Berlin. `Berlin: Symphony of a Great City' movie focuses on facilitating this presentation mainly by the creation of various visual impressions reflecting the buildings, structures, people and activities associated with a metropolis. The movie is an example that demonstrates a film genre described as city symphony. The life in a metropolis is portrayed in this movie is mainly portrayed through several visual impressions that are witnessed in a semi-documentary style.
This takes place without consideration of the narrative content even though sequencing of different events may imply a loose impression or theme associated with the daily life in a metropolis. Moreover, the ‘Berlin: Symphony of a Great City' movie may be described as a representation of an idea of a typical metropolis that is still affected by some of the challenges that Germany experienced during the nineteenth century such as exacerbation and poverty ( Grésillon, 2015). Berlin, as the metropolis in this movie, is presented as representative of some of the most fashionable cities that were in existence in Europe during the early nineteenth century. The atmosphere created in this particular move mainly depicts some of the occurrences and trends that are often associated with a metropolis.
There are notable differences between the metropolis represented in the movie ‘Berlin: Symphony of a Great City' and the Greek concept of a polis. In the ancient Greek world, a polis was regarded as a typical structure charged with the responsibility of representing a community. In this respect, a polis comprised of an urban center situated on a harbor or acropolis which remained in control of the land within the surrounding territory. On the other hand, the concept of a polis presented in this movies considers it as a large city with a critical significance and a substantial ability to influence cultural, political or economic matters and their importance in a particular region or country. The Greek concept of a polis depicted a central place that was often considered as sacred and fortified ( Loentz, 2014).
This location was mainly referred to as ‘city-state' that was independent of all other cities in term of social, religious, legal, judicial and political institutions. On the contrary, the movie presents a version of a polis that represents a fashionable city typical of most European cities that existed during the nineteenth century ( Hendrykowska, 2013). In this case, the fashionable cities lacked independence regarding social, religious, legal, judicial and political institutions. Considering the perspective of the ancient Greek, a polis had the capability of independently taking part in international affairs with other polis as well as states that are regarded as non-Greek in areas of political alliances, commerce, and trade. Several other cultures have also demonstrated polises that have similarities with the Greek concept of a polis such as Phoenicians and Etruscans where the former were found to have previously depended on the idea of having a polis as a central unit in their communities (Grésillon, 2015).
References
Grésillon, B. (2015). Berlin, cultural metropolis: Changes in the cultural geography of Berlin
since reunification. Ecumene , 6 (3), 284-294. doi: 10.1191/096746099701556286
Hendrykowska, M. (2013). The City in Perpetual Motion. Berlin: Symphony of a Metropolis
(1927) by Walter Ruttman. Images. The International Journal Of European Film,
Performing Arts And Audiovisual Communication , 12 (21), 65. doi:
10.14746/i.2013.21.05
Loentz, E. (2014). Berlin Metropolis: Jews and the New Culture, 1890-1918 (review).
Modernism/Modernity , 8 (4), 700-701. doi: 10.1353/mod.2001.0088
