Evidently planned to cash in on the reputation of "Maedchen in Uniform," "Kadetten," the current German film at the Fine Arts, sets a bit of not-quite-nice love against the background of strict Prussian discipline of a military training school; but the result falls far short of the merit of its model.

The sort of bastard Ocdipus of "Boys in Uniform" is a weak substitute for the Sappho of "Girls in Uniform." A soulful cadet is in love with his young step mother, who has married his ancient soldier father for reasons unexplained. There is a murder, the cadet is accused refuses to speak to save his mother sweetheart's honor, and in general displays all the noble qualities of man. After a courtroom scene of strange procedure the mystery is solved and the situation ends substantially where it began.

Plot is the essential weakness of the film. The acting--what there is of it--is good, though long closeups of Cadel Zeddin registering speechlessness are a bit trying. Probably three of the six reels are taken up with hand-kissing and heel-clicking. Trude ron Molo, the mother, is a good actress, but gets little opportunity to be anything more than pleasant. There is, however, an under able fascination about life in German military schools which perhaps compensates for the mediocrity of other aspects of the production.