Woman in the Moon

MOVIE #1,963 • SCORE 7/10 • 09.13.24
SERIES: FRITZ LANG DIRECTOR FOCUS

Visually, nothing comes remotely close to the splendor of Metropolis in this first era of Fritz Lang, though this one has its moments…


On a side note: it's wild that they thought the moon looked like this with bubbling water, and also you can just walk around, you don't need a helmet or mask? LOL.

I enjoyed this — it paired nicely with Kid A the soundtrack (specifically the rocket launch climax pairing with "Motion Picture Soundtrack" provided some fitting and lovely synergy) — but the length of these films are much more of an issue than their having no sound. Seems like they could have told this story in 70 minutes or less (they don’t land on the moon until close to the two-hour mark). 160 minutes is simply beyond tedious but what is time, really. 95 years ago, there was probably nothing better to do. Hell, it only seems like there is now. But a conditioned mind is just that. These films take work to appreciate them. The work can be rewarding but it's still work. Alas, our time on the clock has come to an end today as this is Lang's final work in silent cinema. Next time: his first talkie and one of his most beloved films, M.

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CHRONOLOGICALLY
⫷ MOVIE #1,962 - (YOU ARE HERE) - MOVIE #1,964 ⫸

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Woman in the Moon (German Frau im Mond) is a German science fiction silent film that premiered 15 October 1929 at the UFA-Palast am Zoo cinema in Berlin to an audience of 2,000. It is often considered to be one of the first "serious" science fiction films. It was directed by Fritz Lang, and written by his wife Thea von Harbou, based on her 1928 novel The Rocket to the Moon. It was released in the US as By Rocket to the Moon and in the UK as Girl in the Moon. The basics of rocket travel were presented to a mass audience for the first time by this film, including the use of a multi-stage rocket. The film was shot between October 1928 and June 1929 at the UFA studios in Neubabelsberg near Berlin. It was released on October 15, 1929.