Zitronenherzen (2024)

Carla and her boyfriend, cameraman Paolo, are commissioned by their boss, Ritter, to make a Christmas feature about author Marlene von Osterburken for Berlin Brandenburg TV. Marlene is Carla’s mother, who writes dime novels under the pseudonym Lilia LeClerk about an Alpine baker, and Carla has little contact with her. Before Christmas, Marlene is preparing for a reading. In the previous novel, Lilia had an accident while trying to save the village from the evil Max Meierhoff. She receives a letter from little Anton informing her that she has inherited money from her great-aunt, which could enable her to save the village. The condition is that she must marry before Christmas is over. Carla accuses her mother of writing kitsch, escaping into a fantasy world, and promoting an outdated view of women. Marlene counters that, among other things, her work paid for Carla’s education. On Christmas Eve, Carla is drawn into her mother’s story and finds herself not in Berlin, but in the mountain village of Glocksberg as Lilia LeClerk. There she meets Greta, a village helper, and Humbold, the local doctor, who tend to her after a fall. Carla initially thinks it is a bad joke and refuses to play the role her mother has planned for Lilia, including a romantic happy ending and an arranged wedding. With the help of her new friend Greta, Carla begins to throw the plot into disarray. After Lilia has already successfully matched up the other villagers, the only possible partner for her is the hermit who lives far away. However, he has no interest in her, the village, or its residents. During a taxi ride and a conversation with the driver, Gregor, Marlene rewrites the novel so that the hermit now wants to marry after all. Lilia hands out lemon-shaped hearts to the guests at the celebration. Marlene’s publisher presses her to finally bring the series to an end. Max Meierhoff wants to build a huge estate in place of the village. At the altar, Lilia confesses that she is marrying only for the inheritance, in order to save the village. The hermit replies that he cannot marry her because they are not right for each other, and leaves her standing at the altar. As Carla reminisces about her childhood, Marlene types “Happy Ending” on her typewriter and begins the Christmas reading, and Carla is back in Berlin. During the reading, Carla interrupts. Together, Carla and Marlene bring the story to a positive conclusion by having Max Meierhoff reconcile with his brother, the hermit, so that he no longer wants to destroy Glocksberg. After the audience responds enthusiastically to the reading, the publisher wants to discuss a sequel. Carla and her mother also reconcile, and Gregor and Marlene, as well as Carla and Paolo, celebrate Christmas together.