Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927)

I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Good movie but grossly overrated

it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.

. . . for starting the fad of having troves of life-saving tomes in nearly every American burg and hamlet. SUNRISE, a far more important and watchable film than WINGS--its fellow first-ever "Best Picture" Oscar winner--clocks in at about half of that bloated fiasco's running time. SUNRISE is set in a fishing village which lacks a library and access to such cautionary tales as novelist Theodore Dreiser's AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY. This leaves unread innocents such as the first-ever "Best Actress" Oscar winner in SUNRISE totally at the mercy of vixens "in the know" with access to big city libraries and Dreiser. One such deplorable harlot nearly succeeds in talking a naïve farm boy into committing AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY-style murder. The spotlight shown by SUNRISE upon these dangers posed by a lack of libraries inspired philanthropist Dale Carnegie to begin his nation-wide crowd-funding drive which placed "Carnegie Libraries" in hundreds of often rural locales across the USA (many of which are STILL open for business). Carnegie's library campaign--prompted by his favorite flick, SUNRISE--was such a success that it inspired his best-seller self-help book, HOW TO WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE.

Sunrise (1927) is a historically interesting and beautifully photographed work from the cusp of the transition from silent to sound films. The simple story follows a young country couple as the man falls for the wiles of a temptress and plots to kill his innocent young wife. He finds that he cannot carry out the heinous deed and is then redeemed as the couple rekindle their love in the mad rush of the city. The acting, typical of the stylised gestures and expressions characteristic of silent films, dates the film more than the black and white cinematography and absence of dialogue. Some scenes are fun (e.g. the pig chase, with the cheesecake shot of the critter running under the legs of a row of women) and the realisation of the city and the amusement park (apparently all done on studio lots) is outstanding. The ending is quite melodramatic: a massive storm ironically threatens to fulfill the man's murder plot, there is a miraculous salvation, and a new dawn touches the couple and while the hussy leaves town empty-handed. Clearly pre-code, as the Jezebel shows a lot of skin at times. Enjoyable by anyone willing to accept the style of silent melodramas but a must-see for anyone interested in the cultural or technical history of film.

Sunrise wrestles with themes of morality, love and redemption. For a 1920s movie, the quality of the cinematography is impressive, with the light of sunrise illuminating the screen at the film's end while cameras even move to follow the action of characters from time to time. The film also provides quality shot to shot transitions, with city landscapes and elements of a fun fair fading in and out of focus. It's no question that Gaynor and O'Brien both perform miraculously, but the evolution of their marriage over the course of the film is a spectacle to behold. The film's greatest irony lies in the boat journeys taken by the couple to and from the nearby city. Initially, the man's love for another woman provokes a failed attempt at drowning his wife which foreshadows her fall off the boat on their return journey in the storm. Though he initially ponders sacrificing his wife for his mistress, the man experiences genuine regret and despair when he thinks he's lost her. Sunrise is an admirable look into both the fortitude of marriage and the challenges that it constantly brings about.

Beautiful, perfectly filmed story about love, passion, guilt and redemption. In my opinion, his sin is unforgivable, but if you are able to get over that, you'll enjoy for sure. Camera, directing, acting, music, everything is perfect. Movie leans on German expressionism and it truly is visual work of art. This is the only movie in history to win Academy Award for Best Picture, Unique and Artistic Production, maybe because it was the single year that award existed, and maybe because no movies deserved it ever after. Beside that, it won Best Cinematography and Best Female Leading Role. Film keeps attention and conveys strong emotions. This is the very best silent movie I ever saw.