Even though it’s well over eighty years old, F.W. Murnau’s Sunrise: A Tale of Two Souls is still one of the most amazing films ever made. For a silent film with a surprising amount of visual effects and innovative camera work for what’s basically a dramatic romance mixed with a morality play. The story manages to resonate on a few levels thanks to stellar acting by the leads, phenomenal sets and cinematography and of course, Murnau’s highly expressionistic direction. A simple tale of a nameless farmer who plans to ditch his wife permanently for the charms of a gal from the city, the film shifts into gear right from the opening sequence, pulling you in to the grand final moments.

What’s so incredible about the film is it manages to cover a range of emotions and even dip a toe into a few genres during its running time, only missing a beat when it goes for comic relief in an extended nightclub sequence around the midpoint. That said, when the movie nails it, you’re on the edge of your seat because of the compelling art direction, clever use of subtitles and a REALLY well-coached baby who does a cute move with a ladies hat that adds a nice ending to the scene he’s in. The farmer sets out with his wife on a trip with clear intent to do her in, but has a change of heart that ends up. While influential for his earlier works, Sunrise actually won three Academy Awards at the first Oscar ceremony, tying with Wings as the best picture, scoring nods for Janet Gaynor as the farmer’s wife and the third award for the incredible cinematography.

George O’Brien’s performance as the farmer is also great, but like many silent film actors, he has to spend the bulk of the film projecting and over-emoting to convey his assorted emotional states. Gaynor’s much quieter performance is all about her wonderful face and body language as she reacts to her husband’s deeds. It seems for a few minutes that she’s yet another hopeless victim, but the story allows us to see her cut loose on a dance floor and share some nicely cheeky moments of bliss in a few fun scenes.It’s too bad that the otherwise prolific German-born F.W. Murnau only made three American films (all for Fox Studios) died in an auto accident in1931, as it would have been really interesting to see where his film career would have gone as Hollywood moved into the era of “talkies” and Technicolor.  Anyway, even if you don’t like silent movies, from an artistic perspective, Sunrise is well worth checking out.