F. W. Murnau directs Janet Gaynor, George O’Brien and Margaret Livingston in this silent romance where a cheating husband takes his wife into the city with a plan to kill her, only to fall in love with her all over again… aah!

Choking turns to romance. Cities come to life. Piglets are chased. Absolutely mental and extravagant. Packed with trick shots that still dazzle and strange moments that make you think might be “A Song Of Two Humans” as covered by an extraterrestrial covers band who only spent an hour on Earth between gigs. Nosferatu director F.W. Murnau was given a free reign by Fox for his United States debut; it is breathtaking to see the upper limits of Hollywood technique and money stretched. A rare silent movie where I got on board with the OTT emoting. I was never bored or treated it as a chore as visually this is dense, spectacular and barmy. As a swan song for the silent movie era, Sunrise really exceeds even it unintended brief of being a pinnacle of a dying form.

8

Perfect Double Bill: Faust (1926)

Check out my wife Natalie’s Point Horror blog https://cornsyrup.co.uk

We also do a podcast together called The Worst Movies We Own. It is available on Spotify or here https://letterboxd.com/bobbycarroll/list/the-worst-movies-we-own-podcast-ranking-and/