Metropolis. Thea von Harbou

Jo Fredersen, a great industrialist, is the Master and mastermind of Metropolis, a glittering city of the future and machines. The rich live a luxurious life in the gardens of the upper city, while the workers have to languish in the underground part. One day, Freder, the son of the ruler of Metropolis, meets Maria, a woman from the underground city. He falls in love with her and lets her lead him into the underground world, full of discontent: the workers no longer want to live in poverty. An uprising breaks out: the scientist Rothwang kidnaps Maria and creates a mechanical double who incites the workers to revolution... It was Thea von Garbu's novel, which imagines the abolition of class boundaries in a national community and at the same time tells the story of all-powerful love, that inspired Fritz Lang to create his cinematic masterpiece.