Margit Geissler in Spring Symphony (1983)

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Hmm… A love story set in 1800s Germany. The lovers are musical geniuses. Sounds super exciting, right?

Well, if you rent Spring Symphony for the thrills and chills, we think you may be after the wrong movie… However, if one were so inclined to sit through one of the more tedious films ever made to catch a glimpse of the love between Clara Wieck, the infamous piano virtuoso, and Robert Schumann, the egotistical composer, then this is the film to see!

With Herbert Grönemeyer at the reins of the Schumann character and the always-lovely Nastassja Kinski portraying young Clara, the film is very nearly swept away from its self-made boredom. However, it isn’t… and the whole damn thing drags on for about an hour and a half too long with more uninspired narration, melodrama and overacting than an episode of Boston Public (especially from Rolf Hoppe, who plays Clara’s exceptionally possessive father…)

Now that’s overacting!

In any case, it plays out a lot like Amadeus, except that it doesn’t have that hyena-laughing Tom Hulce at the center of the story. It’s hard not to make a comparison, though, considering the subject matter… In this sort of film, everything seems to hinge on “the music,” right down to theme classics idling in the background of every freaking scene. Somehow, it all becomes trite after a while.

This is definitely a well-done film on a technical level, though. It’s not a total wash but like we said, don’t watch it if you’re tired. It’s great for insomniacs and Schumann-Heads! C.

Nudity Report: Kinski managed to let one of her tits pop out of her dress rather incidentally about a half-hour into the movie.

IMDb Summary: 6.6/10


Written by: Vance Moravian