Smetana's comic opera, played earthy and fast like a piccolo for some of the earliest and funniest traces of Max Ophüls' rhapsodic lilt. "Die verkaufte Braut" or "The Bartered Bride" is a German black-and-white film from 1932. Set in a country village and with realistic characters, it tells the story of how, after a late surprise revelation, true love prevails over the combined efforts of ambitious parents and a scheming marriage broker. It is one of the earliest somewhat known German sounds films based on an opera. The director is the stylish Max Ophüls, who also made several English and French language films in his career and almost a century later he is still among the most known filmmakers from Germany from the first half of the 20th century. The cast includes a couple names that may be known to fans of that era in film, such as Wernicke, Kemp, Valentin and Karlstadt. Still I must say the one thing that makes this film stand out from its competition is not the acting, writing or direction. It is the music and the singing that elevates the complicated love stories between the characters here considerably. Everybody wants to be loved, but sadly it's rarely the case that they want to be loved by the one who loves them. I recommend "Die verkaufte Braut".