The very first Academy Awards ceremony for films released in 1927 and 1928 was not anything to celebrate. The Academy decided not to go all out and have a major extravaganza like what we have today. The Academy literally just presented the awards and that was the end of the story. Even the awards themselves were different. There were two awards that were intended to both be equal to the modern Best Picture award. William A. Wellman’s World War I epic Wings won the Most Outstanding Production Award, while F.W. Murnau’s fable Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans took home the Most Unique and Artistic Picture Award. In the acting categories, performers were nominated for their body of work released between 1927 and 1928, so Janet Gaynor won the first Best Actress Oscar for her work in Sunrise and two other films. Murnau’s film also won Best Cinematography for Charles Rosher and Karl Struss’s work.
The Academy later recognized Wings’ award as the true precursor to today’s Best Picture. While Wings is a fine film, filled with fantastic special effects, it hasn’t aged all that well. In the 80-plus years since, Sunrise, though, remains a great film, directed by one of the best directors of the silent era, Murnau. It’s almost shocking to know that this tender, romantic and timeless film was the brainchild of a man who also gave us Nosferatu.
Sunrise tells the tale of two humans, a man (George O’Brien) and his wife (Gaynor). During the holiday vacation, a woman from the city (Margaret Livingston) and the man have an affair. At the end, the woman tries to convince him to leave his rural home and his wife. They conspire to kill her. When the woman leaves, he tries to go through with the murder, but just can’t. The wife runs off, fearing her life. He eventually catches up with her and they decide to go to the city, where they rekindle their romance.
The film’s story could not be any simpler. It was devised by Carl Mayer, who is credited with adapting it from a ‘theme’ by Hermann Sudermann. The simplicity of the story is what keeps it so timeless, even if you want to read an urban against rural battle in it. While the film’s techniques tell you that this was a film made in 1927, Mayer and Sudermann’s story could happen anywhere at any time. In my synopsis, I didn’t mention names, only because none of these characters have names. That makes it even easier to relate to the tale of a man who sees the wrong in his actions and realizes why he fell in love with his simple wife in the first place.
What makes the film purely a product of Murnau’s imagination, though, is his style. Murnau’s German Expressionist style came with him to Hollywood, making Sunrise look like it has more in common with Nosferatu and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari than Hollywood fare at the time. Camera movement and special effects all seem to come from a magical universe that doesn’t exist anymore.
Sunrise may be a silent film, but don’t let that stop you from seeing it. The film features such fine performances by Gaynor and O’Brien and an ending that is bound to make you shed a tear.
Sunrise won three Oscars, including Best Actress, Best Cinematography and Most Artistic and Unique Picture. The film was also nominated for Best Art Direction.