"My year in Oxford" on Netflix: review, cast and plot

We couldn’t expect anything different: My Year in Oxford is a classic, syrupy romance, in line with many other genre products, and adds nothing, truly nothing, to the type of rom-com it references. As is often the case, the film, a Netflix original, is an adaptation based on a book of the same name, the novel by Julia Whelan, published in 2018 and adapted by Allison Burnett and Melissa Osborne. Directed by Iain Morris, the film stars two actors who have brought some success to the platform. On one hand, there’s the undisputed queen of Netflix romantic films, Sofia Carson (Purple Hearts, The Wish List). On the other, we have King George from the spin-off Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, Corey Mylchreest. Netflix is playing it safe by using two familiar faces, though that doesn’t guarantee they’ll work well together on screen. But that may be the least of the problems with My Year in Oxford.

There’s absolutely no poetry in My year in Oxford Sofia Carson graduates as the star of Netflix romantic movies, but not with honors | Image 576888

Sofia Carson in My Year in Oxford: a love story that doesn’t take off

We certainly couldn’t expect much variation from a love story with a predetermined destiny. For those who haven’t read the novel, the plot involves the arrival of protagonist Anna (Carson) at one of the oldest universities in the world, quickly falling in love and starting a relationship with her PhD student/teacher Jamie (Mylchreest). But the past comes knocking and interferes with their plans for dates and fun. The student-teacher dynamic is a point that’s not explored at all. It’s clearly not a concern of the film, and Jamie isn’t an older professor with a tenured position to uphold. But the fact that no one even mentions it might be inappropriate for a student to immediately date the man teaching her poetry class is a glaring elephant in the room.

There’s absolutely no poetry in My year in Oxford Sofia Carson graduates as the star of Netflix romantic movies, but not with honors | Image 576890

Poetry? No, just predictable tropes

Then there’s the characterization of the protagonist, Carson’s Anna, whose stereotypical portrayal flatters all the other know-it-all pretty girls populating the romance genre. From the start, she is cold and unbearable, not in the fun, relatable way these stories often require. She’s just another one of those “special girls” who end up having it all: intelligence, sparkly eyes, academic talent, and of course, a Prince Charming. Jamie/Corey Mylchreest tries to balance the irritation his co-star provokes every time she appears, which is constantly, since she’s always on screen, by at least bringing some dignity to the British style with his enviable outfits, admirable in contrast to the cheap-looking clothes worn by his partner, and her questionable side bangs.

There’s absolutely no poetry in My year in Oxford Sofia Carson graduates as the star of Netflix romantic movies, but not with honors | Image 576889

A Netflix film drowning in clichés

So if the characters are carbon copies of many other similar leads, so is the superficial moral that My Year in Oxford wants to deliver: it doesn’t matter how long you live, what matters is embracing every second with as much intensity as possible. A modest lesson, especially for a film set around literature classes. So, without shame, but definitely without praise, Sofia Carson officially earns an honorary degree in the “top of the class for romantic films” category, but that doesn’t mean these are quality works. My Year in Oxford, for example, certainly isn’t.