Hasagawa's was a club on the outskirts of the city where the captains of industry would come to revel in their success. Every night dressed up in their finest they would come to be pampered and Hasagawa's catered to their every whim. It was their palace of pleasure, their reward. Tonight they watched a young girl dancing naked on the stage. As she danced her fluid movements were hynotic;the sweat dripping down her face,alluring; her gaze beckoned them in, promising. They wanted her. Fredrick stared in disbelief. Was this his Maria? Was this the angel he met in the garden? the woman men gave their hearts to in the catacombs? All those eyes lusting after her...No it couldn't be his Maria. Maria struggled against the chains. Rotwang had always helped the workers. His inventions made their lives easier. He cared for them. How could he do this? Rotwang watched his Maria dance. The captains were the best and the brightest in the city. They believed.

Hmmm...a bit too much for me. I can't seem to figure out what's going on. I think I do in general some of the detail leaves me wondering if I do or not. Outskirts of the city, palace of pleasure, and chains. I'm thinking some version of "Behind the Green Door".

If Maria is a worker and the narrator a captain of industry then I get it. There's a lot of complexity for such a short piece. Might be worth making a whole dramatic scene out of it. Only thing is I wouldn't be surprised if a guy named 'Rotwang' was a deceiver :)

Maybe Maria IS a worker, but the mention of chains made me wonder. Perhaps she danced, and then later, because the "captains" all wanted her, Rotwang set it up...chains and all. But maybe I am REALLY off base. Besides, if I am right, this could be on the edge of violating TOS. But, I'm not the judge of TOS...and, smilling, know I could be in "left field".

Has anyone ever seen the Movie Metropolis? Maria is Rotwangs niece. Rotwang is an evil scientist the predessesor of Darth Vader complete with the glove covered hand. The Captains of Industry are the elite business owner who live i the city in the sky. Frederick is the son of the Master of the city. The workers are blue ants toiling in a city underground all day servicing the machines. The Maria in chains is the true Maria an angel who tries to instill hope for a better future in the workers and finally the Maria dancing as Hasagawa's is the false Maria an android created by Rotwang to extinguish hope in the workers and quell any dissent among them.... The narrator is a person outside the scene as it was a silent film but as a vignette there are four scenes describes in a rapid pace. The whole point is who is in control here...

WHOA! Too much input...LOL. Haven't seen Metropolis...but, in my best poker scenario, I'll see your Metropolis and raise you one Brazil. IF you dare to call my wager, I have an ace in the whole. Can you say "David Lynch"?

Now, this isn't the best example because I wrote it today when I was online. I just thought of the scene where Fredrich saw all the eyes on the false Maria and went nutso. Rotwang had her dance in front of the captains to convince them she was a perfect subtitute he left no detail unturned, hence the sweat. In the story the false Maria goes underground and convinces the workers to destroy all the machinery. They have no idea what the machines they work on do and end up flooding the city. The false Maria goes up in flames when she gets caught by the crowd. Rotwang falls off a roof. Fredrick and the real Maria get back together and the workers somehow negotiate a settlement with the city master so they can come upstairs and enjoy the fruits of their labor...Its a very complicated story but for 1928 an excellent piece of work by Fritz Lang. Go to your local lib and check out the flick. The media( silent film) was a sries of vignettes designed to tell an intense tell while keeping the flick short.