| ~Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans~ 1927 |
| ~Autrey Portrait of Janet Gaynor~ |
Considered by many to be the finest silent film ever made by a Hollywood studio, F.W. MURNAU's
Sunrise represents the art of the wordless cinema at its zenith. Based on the Hermann Sudermann
novel A Trip to Tilsit, this "Song of Two Humans" takes place in a colorful farming community, where
people from the city regularly take their weekend holidays. Local farmer George O'Brien, happily
married to Janet Gaynor, falls under the seductive spell of Margaret Livingston, a temptress from
The City. He callously ignores his wife and child and strips his farm of its wealth on behalf of
Livingston, but even this fails to satisfy her. One foggy evening, O'Brien meets Livingston at their
usual swampland trysting place. She bewitches him with stories about the city -- its jazz, its bright
lights, its erotic excitement. Thrilled at the prospect of running off with Livingston, O'Brien stops
short: "What about my wife?" Drawing ever closer to her victim, Livingston murmurs "Couldn't she
just...drown?" (the subtitle bearing these words then "melts" into nothingness). In his delirium, the
husband agrees. The plan is to row Gaynor to the middle of the lake, then capsize the boat. Gaynor
will drown, while O'Brien will save himself with some bulrushes that he'd previously hidden in the
boat; thus, the murder will look like an accident. The next day, the brooding O'Brien begins slowly
rowing his unsuspecting wife across the lake. Halfway to shore, he makes his intentions clear, but is
unable to go through with it. As his wife cringes in terror, O'Brien rows to the other side of lake. Once
ashore, she runs away from him in terror, as he stumbles after her, trying to apologize. Gaynor
boards a streetcar bound for the city, with O'Brien climbing aboard a few seconds afterward. Upon
reaching the city (a renowned set design), O'Brien continues trying to make amends to his wife. They
sit disconsolately at a table in a restaurant, unable to eat the plate of cake that is set before them.
Slowly, Gaynor begins overcoming her fear. The couple wander into a church, where a wedding is
taking place. Breaking down in sobs, O'Brien begins repeating the wedding vows, thereby convincing
Gaynor that she has nothing to fear. Together again, the couple embraces in the middle of a busy
street, oblivious to the honking horns and irate motorists. Anxious to prove to each other that all is
well, the husband and wife spend a delightful afternoon having their pictures taken and "dolling up"
in a posh barber shop. They cap their unofficial second honeymoon at a joyous festival in an outsized
amusement park. More in love with each other than ever before, O'Brien and Gaynor head back
across the lake in the dark of night. Suddenly, a storm arises. Pulling out the bulrushes with which
he'd planned to save himself, O'Brien straps them onto Janet, telling her to swim to shore. The storm
passes. Washing up on shore, the unconscious O'Brien is brought home. But Gaynor is nowhere to be
found, and it is assumed that she has died in the storm. Half-insane, O'Brien strikes out at
Livingston, the instigator of the murder plan. Just as he is about to throttle the treacherous
temptress, he is summoned home; his wife is alive! As Livingston stumbles out of the village, O'Brien
and Gaynor cling tightly to one another, watching the sun rise above their now-happy home.
Together with Seventh Heaven, Sunrise earned Janet Gaynor the first-ever Best Actress Academy
Award, while Charles Rosher and Karl Struss walked home with the industry's first Best Photography
Oscar. The film itself was also in the Oscar race, but lost out to the more financially successful Wings.
Plot Synopsis by Hal Erickson, AllMovie.com
Sunrise represents the art of the wordless cinema at its zenith. Based on the Hermann Sudermann
novel A Trip to Tilsit, this "Song of Two Humans" takes place in a colorful farming community, where
people from the city regularly take their weekend holidays. Local farmer George O'Brien, happily
married to Janet Gaynor, falls under the seductive spell of Margaret Livingston, a temptress from
The City. He callously ignores his wife and child and strips his farm of its wealth on behalf of
Livingston, but even this fails to satisfy her. One foggy evening, O'Brien meets Livingston at their
usual swampland trysting place. She bewitches him with stories about the city -- its jazz, its bright
lights, its erotic excitement. Thrilled at the prospect of running off with Livingston, O'Brien stops
short: "What about my wife?" Drawing ever closer to her victim, Livingston murmurs "Couldn't she
just...drown?" (the subtitle bearing these words then "melts" into nothingness). In his delirium, the
husband agrees. The plan is to row Gaynor to the middle of the lake, then capsize the boat. Gaynor
will drown, while O'Brien will save himself with some bulrushes that he'd previously hidden in the
boat; thus, the murder will look like an accident. The next day, the brooding O'Brien begins slowly
rowing his unsuspecting wife across the lake. Halfway to shore, he makes his intentions clear, but is
unable to go through with it. As his wife cringes in terror, O'Brien rows to the other side of lake. Once
ashore, she runs away from him in terror, as he stumbles after her, trying to apologize. Gaynor
boards a streetcar bound for the city, with O'Brien climbing aboard a few seconds afterward. Upon
reaching the city (a renowned set design), O'Brien continues trying to make amends to his wife. They
sit disconsolately at a table in a restaurant, unable to eat the plate of cake that is set before them.
Slowly, Gaynor begins overcoming her fear. The couple wander into a church, where a wedding is
taking place. Breaking down in sobs, O'Brien begins repeating the wedding vows, thereby convincing
Gaynor that she has nothing to fear. Together again, the couple embraces in the middle of a busy
street, oblivious to the honking horns and irate motorists. Anxious to prove to each other that all is
well, the husband and wife spend a delightful afternoon having their pictures taken and "dolling up"
in a posh barber shop. They cap their unofficial second honeymoon at a joyous festival in an outsized
amusement park. More in love with each other than ever before, O'Brien and Gaynor head back
across the lake in the dark of night. Suddenly, a storm arises. Pulling out the bulrushes with which
he'd planned to save himself, O'Brien straps them onto Janet, telling her to swim to shore. The storm
passes. Washing up on shore, the unconscious O'Brien is brought home. But Gaynor is nowhere to be
found, and it is assumed that she has died in the storm. Half-insane, O'Brien strikes out at
Livingston, the instigator of the murder plan. Just as he is about to throttle the treacherous
temptress, he is summoned home; his wife is alive! As Livingston stumbles out of the village, O'Brien
and Gaynor cling tightly to one another, watching the sun rise above their now-happy home.
Together with Seventh Heaven, Sunrise earned Janet Gaynor the first-ever Best Actress Academy
Award, while Charles Rosher and Karl Struss walked home with the industry's first Best Photography
Oscar. The film itself was also in the Oscar race, but lost out to the more financially successful Wings.
Plot Synopsis by Hal Erickson, AllMovie.com
| Directed by: F.W. Murnau Written by: Hermann Sudermann & Carl Mayer |
| ~Cast~ George O'Brien ... The Man Janet Gaynor ... The Wife Margaret Livingston ... The Woman From the City Bodil Rosing ... The Maid J. Farrell MacDonald ... The Photographer Ralph Sipperly ... The Barber Jane Winton ... The Manicure Girl Arthur Housman ... The Obtrusive Gentleman Eddie Boland ... The Obliging Gentleman Sidney Bracey ... Dance Hall Manager (uncredited) Gino Corrado ... Manager of Hair Salon (uncredited) Sally Eilers ... Woman in Dance Hall (uncredited) Gibson Gowland ... Angry Driver (uncredited) Fletcher Henderson ... Performer - Song: 'Tozo' (uncredited) Bob Kortman ... Undetermined Role (uncredited) Barry Norton ... Dancer (uncredited) Harry Semels ... Undetermined Role (uncredited) Phillips Smalley ... Head Waiter (uncredited) Clarence Wilson ... Money Lender (uncredited) Sally Phipps ... Ballroom dancer/kissing couple |
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| ~George O'Brien and Janet Gaynor~ |
| . |
| ~Remaining Credits~ Produced & Released by: Fox Film Corporaton Produced by: William Fox Music by: R.H. Bassett & Carli Elinor Cinematography by: Charles Rosher & Karl Struss Film Editing by: Harold D. Schuster Art Direction by: Rochus Gliese Makeup Artist: Charles Dudley Assistant Director: Herman Bing Property Master: Don B. Greenwood Assistant Art Directors: Alfred Metscher & Edgar G. Ulmer Art Department Head: Gordon Wiles Special Effects: Frank D. Williams Still Photographers: Max Munn Autrey & Frank Powolny Assistant Cameras: Hal Carney & Stuart Thompson Orchestration: Maurice Baron Presenter: William Fox Length: 9 Reels Runtime: 94 Minutes Released: November 4, 1927 Filmed on location at: Big Bear Lake, Big Bear Valley, San Bernardino National Forest, California, USA Mexico Columbia River, Oregon, USA Lake Arrowhead, San Bernardino National Forest, California, USA Filmed in studios: William Fox Studios - 1401 N. Western Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA Westwood, Los Angeles, California, USA |
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| ~Plot Synopsis~ |