Sunrise: Song Of Two Humans

F. W. Murnau had quite a reputation in the film world, thanks to his German masterpieces like Nosferatu, The Last Laugh and Faust. So it’s no surprise that Hollywood came calling for his expertise and technical brilliance, but sadly, like many independent filmmakers of the era (like Stronheim and Keaton), the factory-like world of the Hollywood studio system ate him up. Still, he was able to make one brilliant masterpiece, and that was Sunrise. The story deals with A Man, a country simpleton who is in a failing marriage. He is lured to the pleasures of the single life by The Woman Of The City, who suggests he should kill his wife so the two can run together. What is it with today’s reviews and the many murderous wives? So he tries to carry out his plan, but fails, and in the process both arrive in the city and re-discover why they fell in love in the first place. It’s a very beautiful film in every sense, from the acting to the direction. Much like Citizen Kane would do in 1941, Sunrise is famous for basically using every technical trick known in the book at the time, especially with it’s brilliant use of dissolves, like when The Woman In The City is dissolved over The Man who remind him of her temptation. The sets are great too, looking like locations more than anything else. A really great picture and one of the few films that can be considered a work of art.