June 24-26 | Tuesday-Thursday | 1 hour, 38 minutes | Rated R |
Agathe runs a small bookstore in Paris and has written the start of a novel. Her friend and co-worker Felix sends the chapters to the Jane Austen Residency, which invites Agathe to join them to work on her book. Agathe and Felix kiss at the ferry, but on the other side, Agathe meets Oliver, a descendant of Austen herself, who helps run the residency. She finds him arrogant and boorish, but there are still some sparks there. While Agathe struggles with writer’s block, she flirts with Oliver and Felix comes to the residency’s ball. It’s not a retelling of Pride & Prejudice, despite some similarities, and focuses more on Agathe’s self-improvement and the artistic process of creation than on finding Mr. Darcy. This is one of the beautiful little romantic comedies that have become so rare these days.
“This funny and smart French comedy instead gives us a 21st-century Jane Austen.” -Cath Clarke, Guardian
“A romantic comedy for the quiet, thoughtful lovers who yearn for the sincerity of the past.” -Jourdain Searles, RogerEbert.com
“Jane Austen Wrecked My Life is a gentle treat, sure to leave any book-loving viewer happy.” -Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times
“The kind of warm romance that will make any bookish dreamer swoon, as a thoroughly modern woman with old-fashioned ideas about love experiences her own Austenesque tumble.” -Katie Walsh, Tribune News Service
“While the romantic resolution is satisfying, it is not the solution, but rather a reflection of the courage and determination Agathe has relied on in addressing the issues that keeping her stuck. Miss Austen would approve.” -Nell Minow, Movie Mom
“By the end, romance in the abstract becomes something much more real — and we can’t help but fall for all these characters ourselves.” -Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine/Vulture
“At a time when practically the entire rom-com genre has gravitated to streaming, this bilingual theatrical offering from Sony Pictures Classics feels like the best kind of throwback.” -Peter Debruge, Variety
“There is a ball, a seductive dance that reveals more than words can, a chance encounter, a sexual misadventure, and a final flood of romantic emotion so contagious that Austen lovers will find the film irresistible.” -Thelma Adams, AARP Movies for Grownups
“In the end, Jane Austen Wrecked My Life is both pleasantly diverting and sneakily wise.” -Alissa Wilkinson, New York Times
“[Piani’s] understanding and appreciation of the genre is a dream come true for romantics who know that Mr. Darcy isn’t the ultimate prize when an independent woman seeks happiness and companionship.” -Randy Myers, San Jose Mercury News
Jane Austen Wrecked My Life opens at The Clyde on Tuesday, June 24, and plays Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7:30.
