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H. G. Wells’ Things to Come

It is hard to watch Things to Come without comparing it to Fritz Lang’s Metropolis. They both present us with very different visions of the future. In the case of Metropolis, it is a capitalist dystopia where everything is in art deco. In Things to Come, it is a socialist utopia where everything is in art deco. Both movies smashed budget records in their respective countries. When Metropolis was first released in 1927, it was the most expensive German film ever made, and likewise, in 1936 Things to Come was the most expensive British film ever released at the time.

Personally, I’ve always seen Metropolis as more of an aesthetic masterpiece than a great story. The striking visuals are what are what you remember, while the plot is at times quite silly, the acting overdone, and its messaging heavy-handed. If we’re talking only about aesthetics, Metropolis wins, but in terms of story, Things to Come is a much more interesting film.

Another difference between the two is that Metropolis starts you off right in the middle of dystopia. Things to Come starts off in the present day and shows you how mankind arrives at utopia. It’s a long journey, and mankind has to go through Hell before it gets to Heaven.

You can watch here. There is also a “virtual extended version” that you can watch here. Nearly 40 minutes of footage was cut (and is now lost) when Things to Come was released in theaters. The “virtual extended version” attempts to piece together what was lost through production still and intertitles based on Wells’ original script. The extended version does not add much in terms of story, but there is a lot of interesting philosophical musing and lively debate wherein Wells addresses counterarguments and plays devil’s advocate against himself.”

https://counter-currents.com/2021/08/h-g-wells-things-to-come/#more-130379