Sunrise in 35mm

Sunrise in 35mm

 
Jewish, Hungarian-born William Fox, enchanted by movies, transitioned from the garment industry to nickelodeons in 1904. He combined his various theaters and distribution companies to form the Fox Film Corporation in 1915. Resolving to create better products for his theater chain, Fox moved his focus to production. F. W. Murnau’s romantic classic Sunrise, also known as Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, produced by Fox himself, is one of the final masterpieces of silent cinema. The story of a small-town husband who tries to repair his marriage after being tempted by a woman from the city features unforgettable visuals. Charles Rosher and Karl Struss won the first-ever Oscar for Cinematography, and the film took the Oscar for Unique and Artistic Picture.

DIRECTED BY: F. W. Murnau. WRITTEN BY: Carl Mayer. WITH: George O’Brien, Janet Gaynor, Margaret Livingston, Bodil Rosing. 1927. 95 min. USA. B&W. English. 35mm. New print courtesy of the Academy Film Archive.

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