Nights of Love: A messy train wreck of a romance

If you are looking for a masterpiece, you might want to keep walking. But if you like old movies where people look very intense while sitting in train carriages, this is worth a look. 🚂

It is definitely for people who enjoy that specific 1930s vibe where every problem could be solved by just talking for five minutes. If you hate slow-moving plots and scratchy audio, you will probably want to skip this one.

The whole thing kicks off on a train. Baron van Geldern is just sitting there, looking like he has a lot on his mind, when he meets Evelyne.

Ernst Stahl-Nachbaur plays the Baron with this kind of stiff-necked energy that makes you wonder if his collar is too tight. He looks at Evelyne like she is a puzzle he can't quite solve.

Then, the train derails. It is not a massive, high-budget explosion like we see today, but for 1930, it feels pretty jarring.

They end up at a hotel because, well, the train is broken. This is where the movie tries to get all romantic and moody.

They spend the night together, and you can tell the movie wants you to think this is a big deal. The lighting in the hotel scenes is actually pretty good, very shadows-and-dust style.

The Baron falls head over heels. He is basically a goner for this girl after about six hours of knowing her.

The Marlene Factor

Okay, let’s talk about Marlene Dietrich. She is in this movie, but she isn't the main engine driving the plot like she is in later stuff.

She has this way of looking at the camera that makes everyone else in the scene look like they are just practicing. Even when she isn't doing much, you kind of just want to watch her instead of the Baron.

It’s funny seeing her here before she became the massive icon everyone knows. She feels more like a real person and less like a statue of a goddess.

The plot gets really messy when the Baron finds out Evelyne is engaged. And not just to anyone, but to his American friend.

This is where the movie starts to feel like a soap opera. The Baron looks very pained. A lot of staring into the middle distance happens.

I noticed that the American friend doesn't really feel very American. He just feels like another European guy with a slightly different hat.

Small details I liked (and didn't)

• The way the steam from the train fills the station at the start is actually beautiful.
• There is a scene where someone is smoking a cigarette and the smoke just hangs there for way too long.
• The Baron's mustache is incredibly symmetrical. I kept staring at it.
• The music gets very loud during the "emotional" parts, which is a bit distracting.

There is a moment in the hotel where the silence goes on for a bit too long. It starts to feel awkward rather than romantic.

You can almost feel the movie trying to convince you that this one night changed their entire lives forever. I’m not sure I totally bought it, but I went along with it for the ride.

The pacing is a bit weird. It feels like the train ride takes forever, then the hotel night happens in a flash, and then the ending just sort of bumps into you.

It reminded me a little bit of the atmosphere in Blackmail, even though that is a totally different kind of story. There is just that late 20s/early 30s feeling of everything being a bit heavy and damp.

I also kept thinking about The Mother Heart because of how earnest the acting is. People really felt things back then, at least on screen.

One reaction shot of the Baron lingers so long it becomes almost funny. He just stares. And stares.

The movie is noticeably better when it’s just the two of them talking in the dark. Once the American friend shows up and the "complications" start, it feels a bit more like a script and less like a moment.

I wish there was more of Marlene, honestly. She just has a spark that the rest of the film is missing sometimes.

Is it a great film? Probably not. Is it a good way to spend an afternoon if you like old cinema? Yeah, sure.

It feels like someone’s actual diary of a weird trip they took once. It's got that uneven, slightly lumpy feeling of a real story.

The ending doesn't really tie everything up in a neat bow. It just kind of stops. Which I actually liked, because life is usually like that too.

Anyway, watch it for the train crash and the eyebrows. Skip it if you want something fast-paced. 🎥