The Mechanical Man (1921)

Original title

L'uomo meccanico

Directed by

André Deed

Genre

silent film, science fiction film

Country

Kingdom of Italy

Runtime

1h 20m

Rating

6.2 of 10 from 18 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A mad scientist creates a mechanical man and uses it to commit crimes. A young woman and a comic hero named Saltarello pursue the robot.

slapstickcomedicinventiveadventurousfast-pacedpioneeringplayfulearly sci-fi

What happens

The Mechanical Man (Italian: L'uomo meccanico) is a 1921 Italian science fiction film directed by André Deed (who also starred in the film as the comedic character Saltarello). It was produced in 1920 and released in November 1921. It is one of the first science fiction films produced in Italy, and the first film showing a battle between two robots. The cinematographer was Alberto Chentrens. For many years, the original film, about 80 minutes in length, was regarded as lost until some reels of the Portuguese version were discovered at the Cinemateca Brasileira in Brazil. About 26 minutes (740 meters) remains. The DVD release by Alpha Video uses the incomplete Brazilian print, with new English intertitles. Film critic Christopher Workman has theorized that the film influenced Fritz Lang's Metropolis (1927). Director Deed began his acting career in France, then moved to Italy where he continued his slapstick style of acting. After finishing The Mechanical Man, he returned to France, where his acting career slightly declined in popularity. He did, however, direct around 40 films, and acted in over 200, before he died in 1940. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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