A farmer with a pretty wife and a young child begins a downward spiral after starting an affair with a vacationing woman from the city. The silent film from the year 1927 was directed by F.W. Murnau, one of the leading figures in German Expressionism. Austrian Carl Mayer adapted the screenplay from Hermann Sudermann’s short story A trip to Tilsit.

US 1927, 93 mins, directed by F.W. Murnau

The ACF London’s Cineclub series presents a selection of films from the interwar period to coincide with the Swept Away Festival at King’s Place, London (19 –21 June 2015). The four films screened at the ACF London include Sonnenstrahl, Sunrise: A Song of two Humans, Menschen am Sonntag and Dracula. The films capture the mood of these turbulent years and illustrate the change in cinematic language from silent films to the rise of the talkie. Film historians Brigitte Mayr and Michael Omasta will introduce and discuss the selection of films.