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Rating 5 out of 5
Let’s give some RESPECT to the first winner ever for the Academy Award for Best Actress and the excellent acting ability of Janet Gaynor. This is one of THREE films for which Gaynor won the Academy Award that year. Hear me out for a second. The reason for the three movies is that the Academy took a year’s worth of work and gave cumulative nominations. In 1927/28, Gaynor also starred in 7th Heaven and Street Angel. Just adding to my long list of movies to watch. I will not say anything negative about this film because when you are the original winner, you must be praised and appreciated. After watching this film, I was amazed by the story and some of the shots. This silent film was way more entertaining than most films released now or made after it.
What is this fantastic movie about? Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, aka Sunrise, is a romantic drama directed by F. W. Murnau that follows a couple on their journey to finding love again. A Woman from the City (Livingston) is having a vacation near a lakeside town for a couple of weeks. She is beautiful, but when the sun goes down, she sneaks over to the farmhouse where the Man (O’Brien) and the Wife (Gaynor) live with their young baby. When the Woman from the City is looking to fool around, she whistles from the fence outside. Straight up trifling. The Man is conflicted, but he is smitten and bounces from the house. This causes major conflict between the Man and the Wife as the Wife reminisces about happier times when the pair were madly in love.
The Man and the Woman from the City kiss passionately under the bright moonlight. The Woman from the City has a plan. She wants the Man to sell his farm, which is going to the shitter, and join her in the city. To solve the problem of his Wife, she suggests that he row her out into the lake and throw her overboard so she will drown. That is messed up. The Woman from the City also suggests they gather bundles of reeds so that when the boat overturns, he can use them as a floating device. Who is this chick, and why is she asking for this crazy shit?
Check it, The Wife is utterly clueless about this plan when her husband suggests they go for an outing. When they set off across the lake, her instincts go off like Spider-Man’s Spidey sense. When he is about to yeet her ass off the boat, she pleads for her life. Unable to go through with it, he asks for forgiveness. The Man rows the Wife back to land, and she straight up hauls ass like the Roadrunner. She boards a trolley, and he follows her, begging her not to be afraid. When the trolley hits the city, The Man goes into full-on forgiveness mode with flowers and tries to recapture the love of his wife. The Wife will either forgive or drop his scheming/trifling ass.
Okay, let me tell you!! The story of this film is straightforward in today’s movie world, but back in the day, at the start of the film industry, it was thrilling and AWESOME. We have all seen the film of the cheating husband who wants to kill his wife, only for something to happen, and they make up. This one hit differently. I was trying to figure it out, but it hit differently to me. It could be because there is no dialogue in the entire film, and you must rely on the performers’ acting to explain the story. This is one of the few films where you can follow along without dialogue. Watching The Man have that wild look and then see fear in his own eyes was something. The whole forgiveness tour was sweet because it made you believe in love again. The couple really looked like they had fun. Homeboy got a shave/haircut and didn’t look like a bump. They went to the fair and watched pig racing, where one got loose. They really fell in love again.
That climax was a chef’s kiss to the film. When the couple rowed back, you knew something was going to happen because the day seemed too good to be true. When that storm hit, all you could think was, “Oh shit.” The Man gave the Wife some sticks to float on as it capsized. When the Man thought he had lost his wife, he was devastated, and it was touching to see. When the Woman from the City comes to get with homeboy, he snaps, and the look on his face is terrifying. Homeboy looked deranged and was choking the shit out of her. When he learned his wife was okay, dude straight up left that hoe in the dirt.
What made this film so good was the cinematography. When the camera panned on the Man’s face when he had his crazy look going, you saw it. Dude had wide eyes, and it was intense. The whole time spent in the city was beautifully shot, showing them having fun, and it made you wish you were with them. The dancing scene was enjoyable and well worth watching. The scene where the wife floats down the river is a master level shot. As she floats by, the camera stays in one area. As she floats off-screen, all you see are the sticks that are left behind.
Let me give a big-up to the music. Damn, the music was good in this film. The film’s music enhanced the viewing experience. Gawd Damn was the music good. When the scene was intense, the music was intense and thrilling. This is what makes silent films so great, they really hit hard at your sense of sound. When you add your sense of sight and don’t have to listen to dialogue, you get into the music, which in turn makes you interested in the characters.
As for the cast, everyone did a fantastic job. This is old-school acting, and it was AMAZING!!! First, big up to George O’Brien as The Man. His facial expressions were on point in this film. I saw that he wasn’t even nominated for the Academy Award. A straight-up shame! The biggest props need to go to Janet Gaynor and her performance as The Wife. As the first ever Academy Award winner for Best Actress, she set the standard. This was one of three films that got her nominated and won. She was such an innocent little bird in this film, only wanting to be loved. How you hurt this sweet woman?
These original, old-school films are excellent and highly enjoyable. I was pleasantly surprised by this film. With this being a silent movie, I was once again skeptical, but gawd damn, was this film good. The story is simple but great, with a trifling girl, a cheating husband, and a sweet wife. The music is outstanding and really pulls you in. Janet Gaynor was great, as this was one of three of her films that helped her win the first-ever Best Actress Oscar. Watch this movie if it ever comes on TV. You will definitely enjoy it.
