In the pre-1960 category, 6DTM is proud to select the 1927 Fritz Lang classic, Metropolis.
I thought Itse's Nosferatu pick was a steal this late in the draft, and I think Metropolis is, too. One main reason for picking this film is the art direction and design. It took an abstract world and rendered it in a manner that had never been done before in film. The gorgeous, art-deco Metropolis came to life using a combination of miniatures and other new film techniques. Eugene Schuefftan developed the Schuefftan effect while working on this film: a process of using mirrors to create composite shots, which was in use pretty much up until the time that blue-screen technology was developed.
The story combines elements for Wells, Capek, and other early science-fiction writers, but even though it borrows from these contemporaries, it also helped to popularize both science-fiction and the sub-genre of disutopia. In this case, the disutopia is a city divided into a ruling elite who live in the art-deco skyscrapers, and the worker city beneath them. With mad scientists, cyborgs, angry mobs, and a visual style that lives on in Batman, Dark City, Blade Runner, Gattica, and numerous other science fiction films, it's enjoyable to watch simply to otherstand where all this other imagery came from.
It's admittedly it's a little muddled at times, although it's been speculated that this is because the film was heavily edited for American release and as much as 25 minutes of original footage was lost. (This footage was recently discovered in Argentina, and I'm looking forward to it's rerelease next year).
