Jane Austen Wrecked My Life: Good Intentions Yield Noble if Middling Rom-Com
By Karen Gordon
Rating: B
I'd love to tell you that Jane Austen Wrecked My Life was the trés amusant petite rom-com of my dreams, which I really need right now. Mais malheureusement, c’est ne pas possible.
On the other hand, however frustrated I was by his little French indie, I can't deny that it is good-natured and heartfelt, and did, by the end, leave me with that warm feeling that suggests that l’amour toujours is possible even if life throws up twists and confusing turns.
The film, written and directed by Laura Piani, references some of the tropes of both Jane Austen’s novels, and British rom-coms from the 90s and beyond. That means a lovely but someone awkward heroine, men who are drawn to her of differing levels of compatibility, and a supporting cast of characters who are quirky.
Although the film gets the mood and feeling right, the story is maddeningly spotty. Its arrow is in the bow, but it feels like it’s one rewrite away from neatly hitting the mark.
Piani leans a lot on her cast to help create the magic and to her credit she’s cast well. Camille Rutherford plays Agathe, a lovely, somewhat klutzy young woman, who works in the legendary Paris bookstore Shakespeare & Co.
She has a lively relationship with her co-worker Felix, played by the appealing Paulo Pauly. Do we sense a frisson of attraction there? Or are they good friends? Hard to say, but the two are close enough so that she’s openly able to call him out for what she sees as his Lothario behaviour, which he takes with good humour. The two must be close because he’s comfortable enough to end up at her place, which she shares with her sister and nephew.
There are hints dropped about Agathe holding herself back from engaging with life in the way she hopes to, and that she undervalues her own goals and talents. Hints are also dropped about a trauma in Agathe’s life that have caused her to panic in cars.
Felix is a quiet champion for her. He reads the chapters of a novel that Agathe has been working on and, without telling her, has submitted them to a Jane Austen writer’s retreat in England, run by the descendants of Austen who receive writers in a big, beautiful mansion in the English countryside.
Not surprisingly, she is accepted and tries to resist. She is reluctant to the last second, evoking her fear of the long car rides involved in getting her there. But Felix is determined to get her there and drives her to the dock, where they have a moment and a wonderful kiss.
When she gets to her destination, there is another handsome man waiting. She is picked up at the ferry by Oliver (Charlie Anson) who has the floppy hair, a slight stammer, and other mannerisms recalling Hugh Grant in his rom-com era. Oliver, who is one of the Austen heirs (great-great-great-great nephew) is also a bit of a klutz. And their initial meeting is a bit rough.
Agathe is warmly greeted at the retreat by Beth (Liz Crowther), another Austen descendant, who runs the writers’ retreat. Despite Agathe being the least experienced writer there, Beth has only kind and encouraging things to say that should uplift her.
She meets the other, more established writers, and as in rom-coms of this ilk, they are all a bit quirky. She should feel right at home. There’s even a Jane Austen-themed ball to cap the week off, with everyone dressed in Regency-era clothing and parasols.
But alas, it’s not so easy. Agathe has gone from bookseller to writer. And from single woman to finding herself thinking about two men. One of the most interesting aspects of the film is how this affects her. But it is unfortunately underdeveloped. That’s a fatal flaw.
The biggest problem here is the script. Piani wants us to meet the characters, notably Agathe, and then reveal things about them as the story unfolds. It’s a time-honoured storytelling technique, but unfortunately, she’s left too much of the connective tissue out.
We all know we’re watching a rom-com and therefore we pretty much know what to expect, but even still, relationships are not fully explored, and we're asked to make too many frustrating leaps.
At times, some of the character quirks seem forced and take us nowhere. And then there are things that may have been charming in another era but aren’t anymore.
For instance, one of the writers complains that Beth’s husband Todd (Alan Fairbairn) goes into the garden to recite poetry in the morning without his pants on. It’s part of that trope of the older eccentric or slightly dotty male character, but as the film goes on it appears that he’s descending into dementia, which in today’s terms is neither charming nor quirky.
On the other hand, Piani has a knack for atmosphere and tone. The film has a lovely, homey warmth that evokes a quieter place and time: a country life, a gracious mansion, time away from the manic world with its expectations that force us into routines and exhaust us, so that we don't feel like we have the time and space to get above them, to clear our minds to feel for what is truly important to us.
But she also reminds us that being away from these things is both a bit of a blessing and a bit of a curse. As romantic as time alone in a beautiful house in the English countryside sounds, suddenly being alone with your thoughts doesn't always automatically open up our clogged and tired brains to new thinking or greater creativity in the way we might have hoped.
Piani has assembled a fine cast, especially her lead. Agathe is a work in progress, who maybe has denied herself some of what she really yearns for. Rutherford’s performance draws us in to Agathe. She’s just confused enough to be interesting, and insecure enough to make us care.
Jane Austen Wrecked My Life. Written and directed by Laura Piani. Starring Camille Rutherford, Pablo Pauly, and Charlie Anson. In theatres May 23.