Kino immer anders
This is how Murnau’s modern fairy tale Sunrise begins. The plot is told quickly: a married, young man from the country falls for a beautiful tourist from the big city. She encourages him to follow her and to get his wife away on a boat trip. Only immediately before the crime does the man realize what delusion he has fallen into. The couple then wanders around in disarray and, more or less by chance, ends up in the big city for the first time. Intimidated and enchanted at the same time by the rhythm of modern life, the two experience a day full of unforgettable moments that also allows their love to blossom again.
At the end of the 1920s, Fox Studios was considered the epitome of commercially successful but artistically undemanding filmmaking. To combat this reputation, William Fox brought celebrated German director F.W. Murnau to Hollywood by promising him unlimited funding for a project of his choice. Murnau used this unique freedom to create the most opulent and enchanting work of German Expressionism. A universal fable about love and life, whose scenes captivatingly capture the often overlooked poetry of everyday life. With its virtuoso camera angles, its extravagant sets and its gifted play with light and shadow, Sunrise is a true fireworks display of film art.
Mischa Habertür
