After the visual fireworks of Sunrise & the now-lost splendour of 4 Devils F W Murnau turned his attention to this vivid painterly study of an impulsive & fragile marriage among the wheatfields of Minnesota During a brief stay in Chicago innocent farmer&s son Lem falls for & weds Kate a hard-bitten but lonely waitress Upon bringing her home at the start of harvest time the honeymoon soon turns into a claustrophobic struggle as they contend with the bitter scorn of his father & the invasive leering jealousy of the farm&s labouring community Tenderly romantic & tough-minded in equal measure City Girl is one of cinema&s great pastorals featuring some of the most delicate performances Murnau ever filmed & influencing directors such as Terrence Malick & Jean Vigo