starts with doctor on his horse, and a wire ran across the path trips it and he is hospitalized

The opening scene is a doctor riding a horse on a path towards his house. when he’s nearing the house, his horse trips and crashes to the ground and the doctor is severely injured. upon investigation they find that the horse tripped on a thin metal wire strung across the path. the doctor is gone for several months in the hospital. meanwhile there is a teacher who is interested in a younger girl, and there is romance between them. later on he goes to visit her parents. it is set quite far in the past (lanterns, no cars, etc.). that’s all i remember, as i never finished the movie, but i remember i liked the director and forgot his name.