Die Liebesbriefe der Baronin von S... (1924)

Baroness von S. is a cultured woman in middle age whose marriage has increasingly become routine over the past two decades. During a trip to sunny Italy, she hopes to find rest and a renewed zest for life. There she meets Giovanni, a young street musician. He has everything her aristocratic husband lacks: youth, freshness, passion, temperament, and enthusiasm—qualities with which Giovanni pulls her out of the monotony and rut of married life. She quickly falls in love with the younger man, and he returns her feelings. Giovanni writes her letters full of passion and affection, which she answers, though she never sends her replies. For the Baroness, marital fidelity means everything, and she introduces him to high society. When she is about to return home to her husband, the Baroness reluctantly ends her affair with Giovanni, since they come from such different social backgrounds. As a parting gift, she gives him the love letters she never sent. A year later, the Baroness sees her Italian admirer again and realizes it was a grave mistake to have handed over her written, intimate confessions to a man she hardly knew. Giovanni, now a penniless vagabond, is trying to blackmail the Baroness with the letters she left behind. Matters come to a dramatic head, and a scuffle ensues in which Giovanni is fatally injured. The Baron forgives his wife for the rash steps she took out of marital frustration, and they reconcile.