Last night I went back to the Broadway to see Jane Austen Wrecked My Life. I am not a big fan of romantic comedies but if Jane Austen is in the title I will be seated and I really enjoyed this. Agathe (Camille Rutherford) is a struggling writer in Paris who has put her life on hold after a traumatic car accident that took the lives of her parents several years ago. Her best friend Felix (Pablo Pauly) wants to give her a spark so he sends some of her previous work to the Jane Austen Residency run by descendants of the author in England and she is accepted. Felix convinces a reluctant Agathe to go and, because she is secretly in love with him, she spontaneously kisses him as she leaves and sends him a provocative text when she arrives which confuses him. She soon meets Oliver (Charlie Anson), the arrogant son of the proprietors, and they take an immediate dislike to each other. However, she is still unable to write so she spends most of her time with Oliver and develops feelings for him before Felix arrives to surprise her. She eventually realizes that she needs to resolve the trauma in her life before she can write or decide which man is meant for her. This is a slow burn but it is so charming that it will win you over. The cinematography is gorgeous and I enjoyed all of the locations, especially Shakespeare and Company where Agathe works. I loved the scene where Agathe compares herself to Anne Elliot in Persuasion because she is letting life pass her by and Felix to Henry Crawford in Mansfield Park because he is a cad who is unwilling to commit (I also loved that Oliver is obviously modeled on Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice). There are lots of other moments that put a smile on my face but I definitely swooned during the Regency costume ball when Agathe dances with Felix and then with Oliver because it is so apparent who she belongs with (I wrote a paper in college about the importance of dancing in Jane Austen's works). Rutherford and Anson are very appealing and have tremendous chemistry but I really appreciate that this focuses just as much on Agathe's journey to find herself as a writer as it does on finding a romantic partner. This is a lot more subtle and thoughtful than Austenland and The Jane Austen Book Club but it is a lot of fun and I recommend it.
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