A married farmer is bored with
his mundane country life, enchanted by dreams of a life in the city. He falls under
the spell of a loose city girl, who at first seems exciting and new. However,
things take a dark turn when she convinces him to drown his wife so they can be
together.
Sunrise is brilliant German
director F.W.
Murnau’s masterpiece. He also made the great silent films Nosferatu, The Last Laugh, and Faust. Murnau worked with
cinematographers Charles Rosher
and Karl Struss (whose
photography is wonderfully moody, winning an Oscar) and art director Rochus Gliese. Many of the
superimpositions were created ‘in the camera’ by film being double exposed
(which requires incredible planning and precision). The film was produced by William Fox, who formed what is now known as 20th Century Fox.
Sunrise won three Oscars
including Best Picture (for Unique and Artistic Production – Wings won the normal Best
Picture award – it is the only year that the Unique and Artistic Best Picture
was given out). It also made AFI’s most current list (2007) of the Top 100
America Films of all-time (while it is a German film, Fox producing also makes it an American production). It occupies the 82nd
spot (though, personally, I think it deserves to be in the top five). The film
debuted to critical praise but was a failure at the box office. It opened one
month after The Jazz Singer,
which had audiences clamoring for talkies. It is widely considered one of the
greatest silent films (if not the best, as I would argue). It is a must-see for
those interested in seeing the great films in cinema history.
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