My Oxford Year Review: Romantically Tragic

Despite some flaws in its writing and character building, My Oxford Year is a sweet and emotional romantic drama.

As the title may suggest, My Oxford Year is set in none other than Oxford, where Anna De La Vega (Sofia Carson), an ambitious student from the United States, is going to live for a year while pursuing her passion for poetry. During her master’s degree at Oxford University, Anna will meet and fall in love, despite the not so favourable first impression, with Jamie Davenport (Corey Mylchreest), her literature professor. But Jamie is hiding a secret that may stand in the way of their relationship and possibly their future together, as Anna entertains the possibility of giving up her secure job in corporate finance in the US in order to remain in Oxford.

The second half of My Oxford Year is substantially better than the first, which often falls into clichés of the genre and brings very few original elements to it. But – perhaps thankfully – by the halfway mark, everything changes in a way I could have not predicted. If you know the original novel this film is based on, then you might expect the tragic turn of events that befalls the protagonists; yet nothing will prepare you for the tragic moments that this Netflix romantic comedy has in store for us.  Some changes from the book, especially in the final scene, contribute in making its message even more powerful, heartbreaking, and most importantly real.

The acting in the movie is relatively good overall. Amongst all, Corey Mylchreest shines the brightest in his charming and emotional portrayal of a layered and beautiful character who the audience is soon desperate to know more about. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Sofia Carlson who does not seem to find her feet in this role. Her performance remains largely surface level, especially compared to those of her co-stars who go much deeper into their depiction of their respective characters. On the comedic side of things, Harry Trevaldwyn (Charlie Butler) easily steals every scene he is in with his jokes and physical comedy. The only negative side of his performance is that I wish he had been in even more scenes, which would have helped My Oxford Year feels slightly lighter at times and thread in the comedic side of the romantic genre.

The comedy generally suffers in the movie. While it is largely a drama, the film could have benefitted from further exploring some elements of rom-coms to balance out the generally sad and heavy tone of the second half of the film. The writing is undoubtedly the biggest weakness of My Oxford Year. With some lines that don’t quite land and a few story arcs that are simply not explored, it almost feels like an incomplete story by the time it ends. Its entirely uninteresting first half does not really match in tone or stakes with the, much better, second part of the movie.

From a writing point of view, some plotlines are also severely under-developed. This is especially true when it comes to Anna who, by the time the film ends, is reduced to nothing more than a love interest. Very little is left from her initial motivations, love for poetry, or interest in a foreign culture and everything is now about Jamie and their relationship. While it is understandable for this story, it is a shame. As an American studying abroad, it would have been interesting to portray her culture shock in adapting to British culture and her relationship with her family, which is only touched on at the end of the movie. For a film that is set in a university, My Oxford Year also features surprisingly little of university life or even poetry, which is the great passion that both characters share.

Overall, My Oxford Year is bound to captivate fans of the romance and drama genre, and even make them cry by the time the movie ends. Despite some significant narrative flaws, it is still very much worth it, thanks to some brilliant performances and the emotional turn in the second half. 

My Oxford Year is now available to stream globally on Netflix.