Movie Review: JANE AUSTEN WRECKED MY LIFE
Jane Austen Wrecked My Life follows Agathe (Camille Rutherford). While she spends her days working at a Paris bookstore, she has bigger aspirations. She wants to be a writer. However, she's mortified when her co-worker and friend (Pablo Pauly) submits her work to the Jane Austen Writers' Residency. Agathe finds herself in Jane Austen's England and all the romance that it brings. Charlie Anson, Alan Fairbairn, Annabelle Legronne and Liz Crowther co-star in the movie. Laura Piani directs Jane Austen Wrecked My Life from her own script.
Friends, Jane Austen Wrecked My Life scratched all my rom-com itches. This film manages to be not only adorably French but also rooted in rom-com culture and deeply inspired by Jane Austen's work. There's a lot here to love if you're a sucker for a good love story.
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Much of this is thanks to the powerful chemistry Camille Rutherford shares with romantic co-leads Anson and Pauly. Anson, in particular, brings a beautiful, deep-seated emotionality playing what can best be called the film's Mr. Darcy. Initially, he's cold and a challenge to read. At the same time, though, there's a sensitivity to his bond with Rutherford that becomes all-consuming. I found this particularly evident when, deep in act two, Félix (Pauly) reappears in the narrative and throws a wrench into the relationship. I had previously adored Félix. All of a sudden, though, I couldn't wait for him to move aside for Oliver (Anson). Kids, I was committed to this movie love.
Rutherford, meanwhile, is a fascinating choice to play Agathe. For lack of a better descriptor, she's so French. She's effortlessly cool. This results in a push and pull between this rom-com settling where it belongs as wish-fulfillment and some deeper-laid fan-fiction tendencies.
This script desperately wants to show us how relatable Agathe is. She's adorably awkward and clumsy. She brings a lot of baggage to the narrative. While I adored Rutherford's work throughout the film, I struggled to see her through this more relatable characterization. I was, instead, more lost in the narrative's fantasy. Bicycling through wet Parisian streets. Working at a small but chic bookstore. Being swept off one's feet by a vaguely aloof British man who's a master of the 'Rom-Com Gaze.' This is a fantasy world, but there's nothing wrong with a little wish fulfillment. Let a girl dream, why don't you?
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Ultimately, though, the film's biggest struggle comes in the construction, most notably the camera work. Director Piani struggles to step back and simply let her camera do the talking. Instead, Piani directs with a heavy hand, often weighing sequences down with unnecessary cuts and short takes. There's a beauty to this environment and the interactions among this cast, it's a shame not to be able to sit back and watch it play out.
When all is said and done, though, Jane Austen Wrecked My Life is just what this critic needed. This is a fluffy, misty bit of rom-com wish fulfillment. This bright and charismatic cast gels in this sweet story to make an enjoyably sappy tale. It's sweet, it's saccharine and it's the perfect fit for rom-com fans out there. Be sure to add this to your lists.
Jane Austen Wrecked My Life opens in theaters May 23, 2025.
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