Mixture of American and European elements

I would say that Sunrise, though made in Hollywood, is a predominantly European style film. Proof of this is in the fact that American audiences didn't take to it.

There is another thread on these message boards that details a reveiw of Sunrise at the time of release. It comments that Murnau 'has a lot to learn' from American film makers, though it does credit him with creating a fine comedy sequence" in relation to the pig-chasing scene.

Sunrise is a film that tends to deal with issues, rather than trying to entertain an audience with cheap gags or convoluted plots. The same could be said of Murnau's earlier film 'The Last Laugh'. The pig-chasing scene actually feels a little out of place, and is not something that you can imagine in any of Murnau's previous films.

So perhaps, the most obvious example of an American style of filmmaking creeping into Murnau's work is in the crowd pleasing scenes, such as the aforementioned chase, as well as the journey home, and in the photo studio scene.

Try comparing Murnau's work to that of D.W Griffith, a very American director. Griffith's films tended to put an exciting story ahead of dealing with issues. For all the thought-provoking intentions of Intolerance, let us not forget that he made Birth of a Nation, despite claiming that he was not a racist. Broken Blossoms and Way Down East are primarily melodramas that use injustice and social ills to lock us into the story.

Murnau's films are usually laden with issues, and make very creative use of the filmmaking process.

I hope these ideas help. Good luck with the project.

[deleted]