The chemistry between sweet Berlin street girl Constance Bennett and British soldier Douglas Montgomery makes this World War I melodrama palatable. Montgomery, pretending to be a German soldier, is arrested and sent to a prison camp which he manages to escape from as well. Meeting pretty Bennett on the street, he hides out in her flat where their romance convinces her to escape to Holland with him. But with determined German detective Oscar Homolka on his trail, it becomes two lives at risk. At times, you may wonder if she's really protecting him or setting him up to collect a reward. Or is he using her too in order to get out of harm's way.
Depressing, often humorless, this doesn't fully ring true, but there's enough tension in key scenes to bring you back into the romantic obstacles they face. While Bennett's "profession" is never confirmed, key scenes with various "boyfriends" of hers makes it pretty obvious. This is more interesting for the technical achievements than for the writing or directing even though the acting is fine. Then there's the use of a spiritual theme which comes and goes but helps wrap this up in an organ music finale. A church-less wedding sequence arranged by Montgomery is quite romantic, reminiscent of the "One Hand/One Heart" between Tony and Maria in "West Side Story".
Depressing, often humorless, this doesn't fully ring true, but there's enough tension in key scenes to bring you back into the romantic obstacles they face. While Bennett's "profession" is never confirmed, key scenes with various "boyfriends" of hers makes it pretty obvious. This is more interesting for the technical achievements than for the writing or directing even though the acting is fine. Then there's the use of a spiritual theme which comes and goes but helps wrap this up in an organ music finale. A church-less wedding sequence arranged by Montgomery is quite romantic, reminiscent of the "One Hand/One Heart" between Tony and Maria in "West Side Story".