10 Visual Movie Masterpieces You've Probably Never Seen

10. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans

When you think of old silent cinema, glorious imagery isn't often the first thing that springs to mind. The film stock is old and often the image is grainy and unclear, with constant blemishes appearing on the screen. This certainly isn't the case with the restored version of F. W. Murnau's classic, Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, his 1927 film which tells the story of a man seduced by an evil woman into murdering his wife, but who balks at the task and ends up pursuing her to the city in order to win her back. Sunrise is the first and only movie to win the Academy Award for Unique and Artistic Production, and it's clear why within minutes of watching it. Murnau - whose background lies in the German expressionism movement - proves himself to be a master of light and shade, not to mention a pioneer of visual trickery utilising everything from enormous sets which play with perspective to long, detailed tracking shots (one which follows the two spouses through a busy city street is particularly impressive). The frequently beautiful imagery more than matches the tender and evocative story - Sunrise is an exemplar of early cinema with a fairy tale quality rarely matched.