Discuss the ways in which 'Sunrise' (Murnau, 1927) could be considered to be

both a realist and an expressionist film, with detailed reference to examples from
the film and its production context.

‘Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans’ (1927) was German expressionist director F.W, Murnau’s first film
made in America. The film was adapted for the screen from the short story "The Excursion to Tilsit"
(1927) by Hermann Sudermann. Sunrise was one of the first motion pictures ever to utilise
synchronised sound, thanks to Murnau’s decision to use the Fox Movietone, allowing the soundtrack
and sound effects to be presented with the film, rather than with a live soundtrack played during the
screening. ‘Sunrise’ is interesting in the sense that it is hard to pin down whether it is realist or
expressionist, due to the variety of methods used. As an expressionist film it had a persistent sense
of dread, off centre camera angles, and high and low key lighting. It also utilises methods from the
Kammerspiel including exploring a crisis in a characters life in detail, an emphasis on slow evocative
acting and teeling details, as opposed to extremes.

‘Sunrise’ utilises a variety of expressionist and realist techniques to aid the mise-en-scene. For
example, roughly ten minutes into the film, when the man is walking to see his mistress in the
marshes. The use of point of view shots is made more notable by the camera’s movements. Whilst in
Germany, Murnau had developed an overhead camera which enabled him to achieve smooth
movements, which he then used I ‘Sunrise’, most notably in the moonlit marsh, fun fair and city
traffic sequences. This technique creates an unusual illusion of depth and vastness. This method was
made possible due to the electric camera that they were using rather than typical hand crank ones.
All of the sets were constructed on the Fox studio lot by Rochus Gliese, which mirrors the traditions
of the 1920s expressionism constructed in Germany studios. By filming in a studio rather than on
location allowed Murnau full control of all of the elements, allowing Murnau to present his
character’s innermost thoughts. During the marsh sequence, the man walked to the woman to start
an affair that will end with the idea of the wife's murder. during this the man walks in darkness both
literally and metaphorically. Despite not having dialogue, the audience are able to determine what is
going on due to the foreboding set designs, which used forced perspective, Matt paintings, models,
miniatures, slanted sets and rear projection, which were all common features of German
expressionist films.

However, the expressionist nature of the set designs also create a sense of realism within the film.
for example, for example the smoke, the false moon, and the forced perspectives help convince the
audience that what they are seeing is real. for example they are tricked into believing that the man is
walking through an actual marsh under the real moon. Many of the locations featured in the film are
expressive and realistic. for example the countryside's is a place of ‘innocence and ignorance’
whereas the city is a place of ’corruption and enlightenment’. Both the town and the countryside are
constructed to look real. The lighting also has both expressionistic and realistic qualities. For
example, in the marsh sequence, the lighting is low key, soft and often backlit. This helps to make
imagery that is both beautiful and ominous. The man in the woman's affair is evil and is therefore
shown with darkness. The woman is shown at night with backlit and low key lighting to emphasise
her as an antagonist. Both the set and the actors, during the marsh scene a lit In a way that suggests
that the moon is the source of light. This helps add to the believability of the scene as it tricks the
audience into thinking that what theyre seeing is reality.
 Another method used to add to both the realist and expressionist effect is the use of montage. In
the marsh sequence, the montage helps add plausibility to the scene, allowing the spectator to
better understand what is going on both in characters minds and in the story. After the opening shot
of the man and the woman’s hug, comes the most expressive montage. This is used to convey
several things. It shows the spectator what he has to lose because of his affair – his wife and his
child. The cut also shows the man being ‘as helpless as a child’, whilst with the lady. And finally
contrasts love as being spiteful and sympathetic. It can also be seen as realist because it allows the
spectator to see and believe the story.

‘sunrise’ is both expressionist and a realist film. Murnau mixed expressionism with realism to create
a unique film. This mix allows for a film that the spectator can truly believe in. The expressionistic
aspect allows the spectator to see the characters psychological states, and the realistic aspects
means that it is believable to the spectator. It is impossible to determine what to class this film
under due to its unique mix