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feels like the viewer needs is communicated through various visual elements, which keeps the
audience from needing to be told what is happening. Murnau expects the audience to pick up on
the visual cues in order to follow the story. Silent films are more visual by nature than the films
of the sound era, but the story in Sunrise is emotionally complex and relies almost solely on
image to portray its complexities. Murnau’s work in German Expressionism makes him uniquely
qualified to tell a story in this way. When realism is not the goal, it becomes easier to tell a story
in this way. In the world Murnau creates, fantastical sets, which were notoriously expensive to
build, are commonplace. The lack of realism also allows for the actors to exaggerate their
performances while not going against the tone of the film.

In watching films of Murnau’s such as Nosferatu one might notice that the performances
of the actors do not feel realistic. This style was not uncommon in the silent era of film, as
actions and facial expressions were often exaggerated to portray emotions that might not
otherwise come off without the use of synced diagetic sound. However, a staple of German
Expressionism is not only these exaggerated movements, but also movements that seem wholly
inhuman. It can be seen in the way Nosferatu moves around in Nosferatu, but he is a monster, so
inhuman-like movements seem normal for the character. In Sunrise, movements such as these
can also be seen, even though none of the characters are monsters in a traditional sense of the
word. In the scene in which The Man is about to attempt to drown his wife, the way he walks
towards her feels distorted. It is not representative of the way he walks throughout the film, but
in this moment he becomes a monster. The way in which in walks to her reflects his feelings
about himself and also her fear of him. The walk combined with the dark clothes he wears, the
dark rings beneath his eyes, and his stubbly facial hair all work to position him as a monster in
this moment. It gives him an appearance that is slightly less than human, while also still

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