Fräulein Lilli: A weird, sparkly trip to Monte Carlo

Is it worth the watch?

If you’re the type who likes those crisp, black-and-white comedies where everyone speaks a little too fast and the stakes are mostly just about keeping up a lie, you’ll dig Fräulein Lilli. It’s not going to change your life, but it’s a nice way to kill an hour. If you hate plot holes that you could drive a truck through, though, you might want to skip this one entirely.

Franciska Gaal is the whole reason to tune in. She’s got this frantic, wide-eyed energy that makes the whole 'pretending to be a rich lady' bit actually feel charming instead of just annoying. The rest of the cast feels like they’re drifting in from a different movie half the time. Especially that scene in the jewelry shop? It’s so crowded I swear I saw someone in the back just waiting for their cue to leave the frame.

The transition to Monte Carlo is abrupt. One minute we’re in a cluttered, noisy family home, and the next we’re in these pristine, sun-drenched sets. It’s jarring, but maybe that’s the point. It’s all supposed to be a dream for Lilli, I guess.

There’s this moment where she’s trying to sell a necklace to a customer, and the way she holds the jewelry… she looks terrified. Like she’s holding a live spider. It’s a tiny detail, but it made me laugh because it’s so not what a professional salesperson would do. You can tell the director was just like, “Yeah, that’s fine, keep going.”

The whole jewelry heist subplot is pretty thin. It’s basically just an excuse to get everyone in evening wear and have them look shocked at different intervals. When the guy she likes turns out to be a suspect, the movie doesn't really know how to handle the betrayal. It just sort of… glosses over it.

It definitely lacks the grit of something like Man of Aran, which is a weird comparison, but I was thinking about it while watching the static, indoor shots. Everything here is so polished and studio-bound that you start to crave a little bit of dirt or wind. It reminded me a bit of the frantic energy in Tramp, Tramp, Tramp, though obviously in a completely different genre.

Notes from the couch:

• The boss character wears a monocle that I’m 80% sure is just a glass lens glued to his face.
• The music swells way too loud during the romantic scenes. It’s like the violin section is trying to drown out the dialogue.
• I’m pretty sure the same waiter appears in the background of three different scenes in three different locations.
• Lilli’s family members have zero boundaries. It’s stressful just to look at that living room.

The movie gets noticeably better once it stops trying to be a clever mystery and just lets itself be a goofy romp. By the time they hit the third act, they stop caring if the plot makes sense, and honestly? That’s when I finally stopped checking my watch. It’s a messy little film, but it’s got enough spirit to carry it across the finish line. 🥂