BORDERLINES FILM FESTIVAL 2025

DIRECTOR: FW Murnau
STARRING: George O’Brien, Janet Gaynor, Margaret Livingston
US, 1927, 1 HOUR 35 MINUTES, SILENT + LIVE MUSICAL ACCOMPANIMENT

This lyrical masterpiece from the director of Nosferatu, a pinnacle of silent cinema, is a study of betrayal, love and reconciliation.  With live multi-instrumental accompaniment from Stephen Horne and Elizabeth-Jane Baldry on harp.

Seduced by a vamp from the city, an unsophisticated farmer in a country village plans to murder his wife. However, on their journey to reach town, the couple rediscover their love for each other in a dazzling jazz age sequence. With its dreamlike realism, fluid camera work and simple, intense images of unequalled beauty, this adds up to one of the most enchanting experiences in the history of cinema.

“Murnau’s greatness lies in this realization – that it is possible to photograph the real world and yet invest it with a variety of poetic, imaginative, and subjective qualities.”David Thomson

Best Actress, Best Cinematography, Artistic Quality of Production, Oscars, 1929