Frühlingsrauschen is a lot of crying and castle-staring

Is it worth the watch?

If you have a soft spot for silent films where people communicate mostly through heavy sighs and intense eye contact, you'll find something to like here.

It is definitely for people who enjoy 1920s melodrama and don't mind a story that moves at the speed of a snail in a garden.

If you hate movies where characters make their entire life about a person they just met five minutes ago, you should probably skip it.

Viola is the main girl and she is played by Lien Deyers.

She is supposed to be this innocent, super-excited blonde girl living in a big castle.

Honestly, she is a bit much.

She meets Friedrich, who is played by William Dieterle, and it's like her brain just short-circuits.

He is just visiting from Berlin to look at his land, but she treats it like the greatest romance in history.

There is this one scene where she is just staring at him while he tries to do work.

It’s kind of uncomfortable to watch.

You can tell he just wants to finish his business and leave.

The movie does a good job making the castle feel huge and lonely.

The grandfather is around, but he feels more like a piece of furniture than a person.

Friedrich is actually married to a woman named Irene.

Viola doesn't know this, which is where all the crying comes from.

Irene is played by Vivian Gibson and she seems way more interesting, even though she isn't in it as much.

The way the film cuts between the quiet country and the vibe of Berlin is cool.

It reminds me a bit of the pacing in The Telephone Girl but with more grass.

Some of the shots of the trees and the wind are really pretty.

They call the movie "Spring's Rustling" and you can really feel that.

But the story is so thin.

It's basically: Girl loves Boy, Boy loves Wife, Girl cries a lot.

There is a lot of pining.

Sometimes the camera stays on Viola's face for so long that you start counting her eyelashes.

It’s not as intense as something like Kean, which has much more energy.

This is more like a long poem that someone forgot to edit.

I found myself wondering about the castle's heating bill more than the romance.

The clothes are great though.

Friedrich always looks like he just stepped out of a magazine, even when he’s rejecting a teenager's feelings.

The ending feels a bit rushed compared to how slow the middle is.

It’s like they realized they were running out of film and had to wrap up the sadness.

If you like movies like Men of Steel for the visuals but want something much softer, this works.

It’s a very quiet movie even for a silent one.

Didja notice?

• Viola’s hair stays perfect even when she’s running through the woods.
• The grandfather’s beard is impressively long, almost a character on its own.
• Friedrich has a very specific way of looking annoyed that is actually pretty funny.
• The light in the library scene is probably the best part of the whole movie.
• There is a dog that appears for three seconds and then never comes back.

It isn't a masterpiece, but it's okay for a rainy afternoon.

Just don't expect it to change your life.

It’s mostly just a movie about a crush that goes way too far.

The music (if you find a version with a good score) helps a lot with the boring parts.

Otherwise, it's just people looking at each other very seriously.