If there is one thing many young girls feel like, at one point, they could agree on, it is the title of this film. Setting high standards through her stories and reminding women what they are worth, even in a society that was often unfair to them, Jane Austen’s works grasp the lives of young people to this day. So, in true relatable spirit, the aptly titled film Jane Austen Wrecked My Life is sure to call many to see it. Although it feels very predictable and like it follows the classic rom-com formula that we have come to expect a little bit too closely, attempts to feel like a cute, modern take on Jane Austen’s works, with a modern spin tries to stay classic at its core.

Jane Austen Wrecked My Life follows lonely, quiet bookseller, Agathe, who dreams of becoming a writer. When she is accepted to a writing retreat at the home of Jane Austen, she takes it on, hoping her dreams of love will finally become more than just fantasies she writes about in her head and in her stories.

It is quite unfortunate that right from the start, it is quite predictable where the film is going. In the genre of a romantic comedy, telling a story about a woman who goes off to a writing retreat, it is sometimes unbearable obvious the turns the film is going to take. This film falls victim to these difficult aspects of genre films, where story beats are often quite predicable, making the overall film feel quite boring. Knowing what is coming can be helpful in life, but when trying to enjoy a story it can start to feel a bit overdone.

On top of this, even though the narrative beats are all very predictable, the overall story somehow still feels disjointed. Certain aspects of the films, including conflicts that have come to be expected in rom com films seem to come out of the blue, not set up strongly enough to pack the punch they needed too.

Besides this, the chemistry between the lead and her potential partners is also not too strong, making it slightly unbelievable when she is found having to choose between men, who pine silently for her in the classic Jane Austen manner.

I wish this film had a bit more to say about Jane Austen and her stories themselves. The main connection Agathe has to Jane Austen is that her writing retreat is run by descendants of Austen. Sure, some characters slightly resemble those found in Pride and Prejudice, but overall there is not much discussion of Austen, her work, and how it has impacted her life. She lives in her own head, fantasizing through stories instead of ever pursuing them. But Austen herself feels weirdly removed from the narrative at large, surprising for a film that includes an explanation in the title about how the author herself ruined Agathe’s life.

Overall, Jane Austen Ruined My Life is a cute film. It follows the familiar beats of a romantic comedy, with a charming lead that feels all too relatable. But in the same way, it feels too predictable to ever become enjoyable, with a lack of chemistry between the leads and overall connection to Austen herself to ever feel like it has something to add to the genre.

Jane Austen Wrecked My Life will be released in select theatres in Canada on May 23, 2025. Image courtesy of Mongrel Media.