User Reviews

A blinding drama and portrayal that anyone holding the experiences of the hazards encountered during the tricky travails of a relationship expiring will know only too well. Melodramatic, absolutely, but given the tools and instruments of the day it would have been difficult to be anything but, and therein lies its beauty, as the performances are as convincing, genuine and honest as any encountered on stage or screen today. Peel away your inhibitions, revel in a magnificent corona of emotion, torment and resurrection and let this outstanding visual experience sear into your soul, enlighten and forgive and provide a truly celestial piece of art, imagination and polarity.

This silent movie was absolutely amazing. It was so moving and technical and just well produced. Its amazing how a silent film can make you feel so many emotions without words. It was suspenseful and refreshing from all the movies I've seen that aren't silent. I can see myself watching more silent films because of this one.

I am not a big fan of domestic melodramas but I have to give some credit to this one. Some shots in this movie would be difficult to film even today.

The movie uses two women - one from the city and the rural wife - to expose the man's internal feelings. The city woman portrays corruption and modernity while the rural wife is quite opposite - she's virtuous with good intentions and portrays purity. Throughout the process, the city is shown to corrupt the marriage between the man and his wife and then serves to renew and even mature their relationship. As the man spends time with the city woman, he becomes corrupted and zombie-like but when he spends time with his wife in the city, their love is renewed with positive change as their relationship blossoms again.

The two of my favorite scenes got to be the first boat ride when the man attempts to murder his wife, and when the man walks out with his wife out of the chapel where a tracking shot follows the couple as their walk through the city and several film layers. The boat ride seemed really peaceful, even with the cruel intentions behind it, and you can only admire the camerawork here. The shot, when they walk out the chapel is so romantic - the city is moving around them and they don't even notice. They only notice the presence of each other. Both of these scenes are visually fascinating and the production like that it rarely met in films today.

There are plenty of reasons for film buffs to watch 'Sunrise'. One is if they love, or at least appreciate, FW Murnau and his films and recognise their importance, that's applicable to me. Two is if they love, or again at least appreciate, silent films, have seen some fantastic silent films myself. Three is if one is interested in seeing what the hype is, with it being widely considered a cinematic masterpiece and milestone. Four is if one is interested seeing whether Janet Gaynor's Oscar win was deserved.

'Sunrise' in my mind absolutely deserves every ounce of the acclaim it garnered and still gets. Murnau was a truly fabulous and influential director whose (too few) films were watchable at their worst and amazing at their best, and while 'Faust', 'The Last Laugh' and 'Nosferatu' are wonderful films 'Sunrise' gets my vote as his best. Of the many fantastic silent films out there, in a list that includes 'Metropolis', 'The Crowd', 'The Last Laugh', 'Intolerance' and 'The Cabinet of Dr Caligari', 'Sunrise' is one of the very finest. Cannot say enough great things about it and Gaynor's Oscar win is easily one of the most deserving winners in the early years of the Academy Awards history (in a period with a fair share of questionable nominees).

In a period of exceptionally well made films and even for a director who was a visual master, 'Sunrise' looks exquisite. Not many films at the time and since had cinematography this level of stunning or full of wonder, with also a surprisingly witty style and chockful of images that actually tell a story. As always with Murnau, the sets are indicative of a lot of time, money and thought went into constructing them as they are very rich in detail and lavish. It is also one of the few films where back projection is used well and looks good, usually it looks cheap but here it is quite imaginative.

Murnau's direction was seldom more accomplished or more inspired than here in 'Sunrise', which is quite a feat from one of the more accomplished and inspired directors of the silent film era. A perfect example of why he is justifiably lauded in cinema. The music is beautifully done, it appeals on the ears and is not intrusively used or emotionally over-emphasised. 'Sunrise' is also sincerely written and doesn't ramble. The story is nothing short of timeless and of all the silent films in existence to me 'Sunrise' is the one that connects with me the most emotionally.

A lot of poignancy can be seen here and there are a fair share of memorable scenes, particular standouts being the hard hitting rowboat scene and the visually unforgettable trolley ride. It is one of the few rewatched films this year to uplift me and fill me with hope, sorely needed at a point where that was not felt very much. Simply put, 'Sunrise' is a masterpiece of complex range of emotion.

Wonderful acting can be seen here too, with Gaynor being perfectly cast and a revelation in the lead role, charming and deeply felt.

One can argue that masterpiece is thrown around a lot and too easily these days and personally have tried to avoid using it a lot, but 'Sunrise' deserves it. Amazing film and a fine example of a film that one should see before they die. 10/10.

While some film critics disagreed in the late fifties, giving the nod to Murnau's equally brilliant "Last Laugh," this in my view is the crowning achievement of the German genius. Many polls rank it as the greatest silent film ever made and many rank it very high on the all time list of great movies.

The plot is melodramatic, the acting in places heavy handed, and the action seemingly non-existent, at least in the eyes of the "Terminator 3" generation,yet "Sunrise" is so captivating a film that it can be watched over and over again and deliver the same punch every time. In fact, like the other greats,including "Citizen Kane," you can probably get something new out of "Sunrise" every time you watch it, no matter how many times you watch.

Murnau takes barren sets and dark, hallow rooms and turns them into treasure troves of lighting and nuance. He creates something as simple as a railway depot or a big traffic intersection and makes it a story all by itself.

"Sunrise" stands today as one of the most visually fascinating films ever made. Murnau's cinematographers, Charles Rosher and Karl Struss, got an Oscar for their work and surely deserved it. Janet Gaynor won the Best Actress award for her body of work that also included "Seventh Heaven" and also richly deserved the prize. Her face expresses her inner emotions so perfectly that some of her scenes are achingly beautiful.

And the film itself received an academy award for "Most unique and artistic production," an award never given out again, maybe because no picture could live up to the standard set by "Sunrise."

The new DVD version being marketed on the quiet by Fox is marvelous, with a wonderfully restored print that seems just as bright today as it must have in late 1927 when the film was released. The DVD includes an interesting commentary option by cinematographer John Baily and no film is better suited for this, since it tells its story brilliantly with pictures alone, so the commentary option is not a distraction.

One of the great tragedies of the cinema in my view is that few people alive today have seen "Sunrise." They have no idea what they are missing.

This one ranks among the five best films ever made.

I finally got a hold of the 'Sunrise' DVD, which is only available in English-speaking America (for free) by buying three titles of the excellent Fox Studio Classics line and sending in proofs of purchase. I urge everyone to get this DVD either by sending your three coupons to the promotion or by dealing with someone in the province of Québec since it appears to be the only place in North America where this contest is void and one can buy it directly off the shelf.

I have heard about 'Sunrise' all my life but the closest I ever got to see a part of it was, as a quote, in Martin Scorsese's 2-DVD made-for-the-BBC lecture with illustrations 'A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies' (1995). Nobody told me the following:

It is a pioneering, overwhelming piece of cinema that still manages to move me (ME!) after I thought I had seen everything. It is a profoundly human film which made me cry for 15 minutes solid in its first part (a reconciliation scene that has to be seen to be believed). This film has more special effects than Terminator 3, all in the service of a thoroughly poetic, bucolic, pastoral, personal, contemplative, idiosyncratic, lyrical, late romantic and expressionist vision of humanity. Its love story, poignant and comic elements have inspired, in no specific order, René Clair ('Le Million'), Jean Vigo ('L'Atalante', 'Zéro de conduite'), Charlie Chaplin (all his subsequent films), Fellini ('La Strada', 'Nights of Cabiria') and even James Cameron ('Titanic').

The camera is extremely mobile (more so than in most of today's films, except maybe The Matrix) and the acting is superb. I finally understand why Janet Gaynor was such a big star and a big deal in her time. Her co-star George O'Brien would be hunk-o-rama of the month at the box office today if he was still around. Margaret Livingston (who she?) is also quite realistic as a believably enticing city girl vamp (of modest means) who tries to lure the hero away from his deserving wife.

The DVD has more extras than a Criterion issue, including a tentative reconstruction of Murnau's missing American masterpiece 'The Four Devils' (a circus love story) and the entire shooting scripts of both 'Sunrise' and 'The Four Devils'.

'Sunrise' is presented with two soundtracks: the original (mono) Movietone (i.e. optical track) anonymous composite soundtrack cobbled together from several sources (think Wagner's Siegfried Idyll) and a newly written and recorded (stereo) score with all-original themes, that closely follows the original in spirit but not in melody.

Both soundtracks try to add an intimate, poetic dimension to the film, which is subtitled 'A Song of Two Humans'. The music is an integral part of the experience as the film is conceived as a tone poem and, as such (my theory) is a kind of transcription for the masses of Schoenberg's 1900 string ensemble tone poem 'Verklärte Nacht' (Transfigured Night), a late-Romantic/early expressionist attempt to describe musically the 'truly profound and authentic' relationship between a man and a woman who have problems (the music follows a poem of the era).

Both soundtracks succeed admirably, my preference going to the new one, despite the original's polish, historical value and magnificent preservation. And that would be because, although in the silent era there was no stigma attached to accompanying silent movies with a score made up of public domain and rather recognizable pieces, as long as they fit the mood, times have changed ('2001, A Space Odyssey' notwithstanding) and this practice is more distracting than anything for a contemporary, moderately educated spectator.

Murnau had very highbrow ambitions but his film is totally clear and populist and made to reach the widest popular audience thanks to the incredible sums of money and artistry that Fox poured in the project. 20th Century Fox basically imported a genius from Germany, gave him a ton of money and told him: 'Make us a movie that will be the most prestigious ever made in this town and that will win us the first Oscar'. And that's just what he did!

Needless to say, that was a long time before Rupert Murdoch took over the Fox Corporation...

This silent film is very impressive for its time. The way the film was shot and edited is astonishing for the year 1927. The visual quality is amazing from the way it has been shot, as it is still a clear and viewable film today. The use of sets interests me, and the fact that they went as far as to use double images, like the one where the man and his lover are laying in the grass. The story is portrayed without the use of words and I find this film to be very interesting, and a great peak into its time period from which it was created.

In "Sunrise" Murnau combines two themes that he would revisit in later films. The difference between the city and the countrysite is also the theme of "City girl" (1930). The endangered romance of "Sunrise" has become the doomed romance in "Tabu" (1931) four years later.

"Sunrise" was the first American film of Murnau. The American industry had come to the conclusion that as an industry they were unbeatable, but as artform they could still learn something from Europe and especially Germany with its expressionist directors. With "Sunrise" Fox studio's got what they asked for, a brilliant movie that however did not perform well at the box office. It is interesting to see how in "Sunrise" Murnau is standing with one leg in the Unites States while the other is still in Germany. The big city is very American while the farming village reminds of his "Faust" (1926) movie.

"Sunrise" consists of three parts. In the first part "the man" ("Sunrise" has "generic" characters without a name) is seduced by "the woman from the city". This part is like a film noir avant la lettre, including the typical femme fatale ("the woman from the city"). Noteworthy is the opposition between "the woman from the city" and "the wife" (played by Janet Gaynor in an Oscar winning role). "The wife" is an icon of kindness and virtue. Some reviewers compared this character to the "Gretchen" character in "Faust", and not without reason. In part 2 "the man" and "the wife" reconcile after the affair of the man and in effect marry for the second time. After that they have a good time in the city. This part is pure romance. Part 3 is tragedy turning into a fairy tale. I especially liked the fairy tale ending when we see the "woman from the city" return home. Her evil plans have ultimately failed.

Many reviewers have already noticed that "Sunrise" is a brilliant movie based on a very meager and sentimental story. There are multiple reasons for this. In the first part (which I personally like the best) it is the mood that Murnau creates. The swamp in which "the man" and "the woman from the city" meet symbolises the danger the man is lured into. Also the editing between "the man" and "the woman from the city" kissing in a state of delight and "the wife" and her baby hugging in a state of despair is real fine. Notable of the second part is above al the cinematography. Long before the handheld and the steadycam the camera is very mobile and in so doing visualises the dynamism of the big city.

F. W. Murnau's classic silent film tells the tale of a man who finds himself falling in love with his wife all over again after stopping himself just short of killing her at his mistress' request. The director is certainly firing on all cylinders here, as 'Sunrise: A Song Of Two Humans (1927)' is incredibly ambitious in its filmmaking right from the start. It creates a dark, moody atmosphere with ease and makes use of several ahead-of-their-time techniques that still manage to impress today, nearly a hundred years after the picture's release. Since Murnau supposedly hated using title cards, the story is told predominantly via visual methods - which is really how it ought to be regardless of whether the thing has sound or not. This makes for a generally compelling watch and, because it's done so well, actually conveys a surprising amount of character depth and development. The first half of the flick is great, a bold and unconventional experience that hooks you almost right away. However, at its mid-point it turns, almost on a dime, and becomes an entirely different movie. From here on in, the tone is light and playful; it basically becomes a comedy. This is really jarring and, what's worse, it doesn't even make for an interesting change in direction because the subsequent scenes are, frankly, a little dull. They see our focal couple basically just jaunting about town with a new lease on life - or marriage, anyway - and they get repetitive really quickly. They're not bad, of course, and they continue to make good use of some inventive filmmaking techniques, but they inarguably pale in comparison to their first act counterparts. It just sort of feels like the thing is stretched out to feature length, really; most of the 'happy' scenes could have done with a bit of trimming. The finale does bring things back to the more moody vibe of the first act and it works all the better for it. It finishes on a strong note, essentially bringing things full circle in terms of quality. It may sound like the mid-section ruins the affair but it's not as detrimental as that; it just knocks it down a peg or two. The overall piece is still an impressive, mostly successful silent feature that's more inventive and experimental than it has any right to be. It's an entertaining and distinct film, despite its issues. 7/10.

Murnau seems to be gaining a new appreciation among cineastes. I had just finished watching a beautifully restored print of "White Mane", Lamorisse's masterpiece, and tuned in TCM's Silent Sunday feature, Murnau's "Sunrise".

First, I must agree that his imagery is superb, a cinematic Atget.The downside was the plot. A muddled variant on Dreiser's "An American Tragedy". There seems to be a recent trend toward "drown your lover" films. The matter-of-fact aspect of the murder plot left me wondering about the seeming lack of humanity. Saying more would be revealing too much. Suffice to say, I was left to speculate about what constitutes a deal-breaker in a marriage.

The more confusing aspect was the sense that middle Europe was a suburb of Los Angeles. We drifted between the Black Forest , 1920 Berlin and L.A. Villagers evoked scenes from "Frankenstein"--not horror, but peasant life.

The most telling scene for me was the open trolley ride from forest to big city. It was a magical scene, moving through space and time. It recalled for me the similar ride in 1940's Philadelphia from Fairmount Park to Woodside Amusement Park.

Given the time in which "Sunrise" was made, it certainly broke new ground in imagery. Unfortunately, the narrative was More banal melodrama.

This is a really riveting film, sometimes thought to be the greatest of all. I tend to ignore the term "greatest," but it is a really dynamic and creative piece. It involves a man who becomes obsessed with sex and leaving his seemingly dull life. He meets a sort of flapper who wants to take him away to the big city. But first he must do away with his wife. When an attempt fails, things are thrown into chaos. Murnau is certainly about as inventive as any film director in history. When one realizes what he does in1927, it is astonishing. Both principals are very good. Of course, silent films do depend on emoting, but within its bounds this one seems to really work. An important element of this is whether we, the audience, can forgive this guy, let alone his wife.

I am a big fan of the silent era, especially the German expressionist films, and I would have to say that although there are many great silent films-- Metropolis, Pandora's Box, The Wind, etc.-- this film is my favorite. I feel that it is Murnau's greatest film. While it does not have the social implications of his films such as "Nosferatu" or "Faust," the cinematography, acting, and Murnau's unabashed belief in the power of love helps this film to rise above the rest.

The acting is sterling, with a 21-year-old Janet Gaynor looking incredibly similar to Drew Barrymore, and delivering a layered performance that reveals her character's strong but tenuous emotional state. I suspect that George O'Brien wasn't exactly what Murnau wanted for his lead actor, due to the lengths that Murnau went to to extract O'Brien's performance, but credit is due the actor for a performance which was brave at times and never ego-centric.

Murnau's use of symbolism and metaphor are suppressed compared to the standards of his other films. In this film their use is more to augment the story rather than actually being the story under the narrative. One example is the fish nets waving the wind as O'Brien returns home from his tryst with the dark seductress, a terrific metaphor for his entrapment and helplessness.

The story itself is one that can appeal to many audiences, as it has its fair share of melodrama, comedy, sap, and suspense. I saw this film with my 17-year-old nephew, who is your typical disaffected digital generation teenager, and he was awful quiet during the dramatic sequences and awful loud during the comic portions. It is amazing how I my own emotions were manipulated by the film without Murnau ever being manipulative or obvious.

The true star of this film, of course, is the cinematography. It is simply awesome. I have done a lot of work with old film cameras, and I have no clue how Strauss managed some of the shots he did. Murnau was one of the first directors, if not the first, to use camera motion during a film. This was no small feat in the days where the camera was not motorized and had to be hand-cranked. The camera movement is amazing. There is a shot where O'Brien moves through the swamp, with wet, muddy, and uneven ground, to meet the woman from the city, and the camera tracks along with him. It looks like a steadicam shot! No track could have performed this shot as it exists, and I have no explanation on how he did this other than that he must have suspended the camera from the ceiling of the studio. Shooting a swamp scene with fog and a full moon in a studio is a feat in itself. There are also other feats of cinematography. There are several shots where the city is the typical cardboard cutout, there are people milling around in the street, yet the trains and trolleys are obviously models. HOW????? If you are able to get the DVD with the cinematography commentary, it is well worth the investment.

To the king of the silents... 10/10

Sunrise, primely the finest and most beautiful love story of two humans, hailed for its simplicity and passion. When the married man is blinded by the dangerous beauty and persuaded to murder his innocent wife. He's life is then followed by a string in emotions of happiness, grief, anger, joy, shame and guilt.

Temptation and fear weave a dangerous net, and "The Song of Two Humans" tells the purport in a moving, harrowing and heart-rending way about obsession, love and forgiveness(maybe a bit too unrealistic) depicted with exquisite pictures and cautious directing. In addition, almost the whole movie is told visually without relying on dialogue and instead expresses the tale with magnificent acting in both body language and facial expression.

Sunrise is a beautiful film made possible by technical achievement and expressive acting. Murnau's use of double exposure was innovative and memorizing. It not only creates imaginative shots, but adds to story. Double exposure was used to illustrate the inner turmoil of characters, create contrast between different environments, and allude to future elements of the story. Murnau brings the artistry of the German Expressionist movement to this film.

Sunrise created a marriage between the techniques of German filmmakers and American filmmakers, creating a one of a kind film. Light and shadow was used masterfully and adds drama. A simple story of betrayal, forgiveness, and love is really brought to life by the innovative techniques of Murnau.

Before the movie starts properly, Sunrise professes that life is sometimes bitter and sometimes sweet, and that is exactly what this film is; a bittersweet symphony of life and love. Flamboyant German director, F.W. Murnau directs this film with a great love and precision, his direction in the movie is flawless. Sunrise features very little story cards, and it almost totally told with just visuals and music. This is a testament to Murnau's talent for storytelling; to portray a story without dialogue is something that all silent films have to do, but to tell a story without many story cards either is something that many directors would struggle to do. The music in Sunrise is simply sublime; it fits what's going on in the film to a tee, and also succeeds in making the visuals' power more potent. Sunrise is a groundbreaking film, some of the techniques used by Murnau to tell his story are amazing, especially for the time. Techniques such as his use of flashback have had a major impact on cinema as a whole.

And the film isn't just a technical marvel either; there is more than enough substance here. The plot isn't massively substantial, but it's the subtext that is important. It follows the story of a man who, tempted by a woman from the city, gets talked into murdering his wife. Him and his wife used to be madly in love, described by their maid as 'being like children', but the love has since stagnated and so the man is easily taken in by an offer from a beautiful to move to the city. However, when it comes to doing the act; he can't do, and so the film moves into following the two falling back into love. Like life itself, the film is never plain sailing and that seems to be it's central message, along with the fact that love is more powerful than anything that life can throw at you. And those are welcome messages in any film, especially one as brilliant as this.

Overall, Sunrise is a masterpiece. It easily ranks as one of the best, and most important silent films ever made and it is as brilliantly technically as it is on the substance front. A must see for all fans of cinema.

For its time, SUNRISE was a masterpiece of silent film. The print shown on TCM included bits of street noise, musical background score and bells tolling from a tower or for a church wedding. Combined with the sights and sounds of a bygone era, the acting by JANET GAYNOR and GEORGE O'BRIEN doesn't seem as overly melodramatic as some silent screen acting is. And F.W. Murnau's excellent use of tracking shots and overlapping visuals to suggest what the actors are thinking, is done with stylish flair. The photography itself suggests German expressionism as the mood of the film.

The story is deceptively simple--a husband goes astray after an affair with a seductive woman in the city. The woman convinces him to kill his wife and leave the countryside for a city life with her. The boating scene builds to a frenzied climax when the husband convincingly changes his mind just as he is about to hover menacingly over the frightened wife. How things turn after that point is what makes the story (and the film) so great.

Gaynor and O'Brien both give priceless performances that will keep you wanting to see how all the strands of the story work out. Viewers will get drawn into the story from the start and be rewarded by watching the entire film unwind in its own dreamlike way. Highly recommended.

It's difficult for me to rank a film as old as this on a numbered scale, especially considering that that number scale compares the rating of films from this time period to contemporary ones with the advantages of over ninety years of technology and innovation, crafted on budgets that dwarf these that were created when movies were still a novelty.

"Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans" is a simple love story. The Man (George O'Brien) is tempted into having an affair with the Woman From the City (Margaret Livingston) and is asked to murder his Wife (Janet Gaynor) by drowning her in a lake. He resists, and the couple rediscover their love for each other through a visit to the city.

"Sunrise" is a great film that pulls out a ton of visual tricks from the day and employs a ton of creative uses of flashback and cutaway sequencing to tell its narrative. The acting is also phenomenal. Silent films just do a great job, a lot of the time, of showing us the visual and physical side of acting that we normally don't notice in modern movies.

I recommend "Sunrise" to anyone who has an interest in watching one of the greatest silent films of all time, and anyone who has an interest in the history of cinema in general. Interesting to note, "Sunrise" won the 1927 Academy Award for Unique and Artistic Picture, the first and only of the category. The category would later be folded in with Outstanding Picture the following year, which is known today as Best Picture. So in a way, you could say that this is one of the first two winners of the Academy Award for Best Picture, an honor shared with the film "Wings."

Beyond its awards and accolades, "Sunrise" is a very enjoyable movie with a simple but engaging story that is executed masterfully and is a joy to watch. I would recommend this to anyone who is serious about movies as a form of artistic expression.

F. W. Murnau made only three films after he settled in Hollywood, before his untimely death. Sunrise is easily the best of them. From a technical perspective it's a brilliant film. Murnau uses dissolves, overlapping imagery, beautiful cinematography and a "soundtrack" with special effects sounds that make you feel this film more than any other silent film. The sparse use of intertitels is a sign this is a great master at work who doesn't need words to sell an emotional story.

'Sunrise: A Song of Twitter Humans' is an underrated masterpiece by F.W. Murnau, a legendary director. A tale about the human condition, envy and love, with impressive directing and editing, totally ahead of its time. Mandatory to watch.