Lady Windermere’s Fächer: A bit stuffy, but those hats!

Is it worth your time?

If you have a thing for vintage black-and-white dramas where everyone speaks in sharp, calculated sentences, you’ll probably find something to like here. If you need pacing faster than a tortoise on a coffee break, skip it. You might hate this if you find 1930s acting styles a bit too theatrical or if you just aren't in the mood for Victorian-era social politics.

Honestly, I went into this expecting something a bit more biting. Wilde’s dialogue is usually like a razor, but here it feels a little dulled by the heavy, stagey direction. Sometimes people just stand there, waiting for their turn to drop a line, and you can almost hear the floorboards creaking.

The Fan is the star, really

The whole thing hinges on this fan—it’s the classic MacGuffin. It shows up, it gets left behind, it gets found by the wrong person. It’s almost funny how much anxiety a piece of painted silk can cause. Lil Dagover really carries the weight of the film on her shoulders, especially when she has to pivot between being the victim and the schemer.

• The lighting in the ballroom scene is actually kind of moody and cool.
• Some of the side characters are just there to hold cigarettes and look vaguely disappointed.
• There’s a moment with a doorway that lasts for an eternity, I swear.

Comparing this to something like Thin Ice, you can really feel the difference in how they handle romantic tension. Here, it’s all held behind stiff collars and arched eyebrows. It lacks that breezy, light-footed energy you find in better-paced comedies from the same era.

I found myself zoning out a bit during the long monologue sequences. Maybe I’m just impatient, but I wanted them to stop talking about their reputations and just do something impulsive. The drama is high, sure, but it feels like it’s happening behind a thick sheet of glass.

Is it a masterpiece? No. Does it feel like a time capsule of a specific type of German-made period piece? Absolutely. It’s not going to change your life, but it’s a decent way to spend a rainy afternoon if you just want to watch people make mistakes in very expensive clothing. 🎩