ENTERTAINMENT-NETFLIX MOVIE | Features: ‘My Oxford Year’: A charming romance wrapped in conflicted feminism
Similar to Emily in Paris, it is another Netflix love drama about the culture shock and culture clash experienced by an American lady in a foreign country. Another similarity is that My Oxford Year is filled with beautiful people, an authentic atmosphere, awkward romance, and a confusing sense of feminism.
Anna De La Vega (Sofia Carson), a sharp-witted American literature student, arrives in Oxford with dreams of immersing herself in Victorian verse and ivy-covered academia. But her grand scholarly adventure gets off to a soggy start – quite literally – when a passing car drenches her in muddy water. Behind the wheel? Jamie Davenport (Corey Mylchreest), broodingly charming and infuriatingly smug.
Fate – or perhaps karma – has a sense of humour, as Anna soon discovers Jamie is not just a reckless driver but also her new professor. Their early exchanges are laced with sarcasm and simmering tension, but the sparks turn playful after a chance encounter leads to an unexpectedly delightful night out. Anna finds herself in her first British pub, trading jokes, stories – and possibly flirtations –with the one man she swore to loathe.
Memento Maxima Digital MarketingJust when it seems the evening might end with more than just laughter, Jamie pulls away, leaving Anna confused and stung. Not one to wallow, she hatches a quick revenge plan: make him jealous. And what better way than twirling across the dance floor in another man’s arms, all while Jamie watches from the shadows?
The rest is a complicated love story.
This film begins like a light-hearted romantic comedy but gradually reveals a much deeper narrative. At its core, it’s a story about rediscovering the meaning of life. Anna undergoes a powerful transformation, choosing to embrace life more fully and make it worth living. The ending is particularly poignant, serving as a reminder of how fleeting life can be and the importance of living in the moment.
It also highlights how a single decision can completely alter carefully laid plans. Jamie’s influence on Anna – encouraging her to truly live – remains a touching part of the story. Although he doesn’t join her on the trips they once planned together, Anna carries out their dreams and imagines his presence with her. The film doesn’t shy away from the harsh realities of sickness and death, but it ultimately affirms that life goes on, and it’s meant to be lived.
Here comes the bad part. While the protagonist is depicted as a feminist, this film plays like a thinly disguised endorsement of outdated gender norms, pushing the notion that women should trade ambition and financial independence for fleeting romance and emotional unpredictability. The message feels not only unpersuasive but undeniably regressive. The female lead’s choice to walk away from a high-paying corporate career comes across as a disservice to her own goals and character development.
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Even more concerning is the loss of her personal identity by the film’s end. She adopts the male lead’s interests wholesale – taking up his career path, mimicking his teaching style, and seemingly absorbing his entire persona. While framed as a heartfelt tribute, it instead feels like a complete erasure of who she was.
Still, it is a good watch for this weekend; it is something that would inspire female viewers to further advanced studies.
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