A young woman in Paris, who dreams of becoming a successful writer and experiencing true love, may finally have her Jane Austen moment… -Tagline

Writer-director (Laura Piani) was inspired to write this story during her time working at Shakespeare and Company, a famed bookstore in Paris. Agathe (Camille Rutherford) is a 30-something/Parisian/single bookseller who shares banter w/ her pal/co-worker Felix (Pablo Pauly). As Austen may’ve said, she is at the risk of being an “old maid” and he is a scoundrel (prone to hookups/situation-ships). Agathe accuses Felix of “breadcrumbing,” yet you still can imagine attraction btwn the two friends. Felix (secretly) submits the first few chapters of Agathe’s novel; to her shock, she is selected to attend a writer’s retreat (The Jane Austen Residency)! When she gets to England, she meets Oliver (Charlie Anson), a Lit prof whose parents run the residency.

This is type of mid-budget/rom com that rarely gets made (in the US) today! FYI: This film is in BOTH French and English. It deals w/ real-world issues, yet has quiet humor. None of the characters are glam, young, or look like “typical” movie stars. I recommend it for those who’re NOT only Austen fans, BUT enjoy quiet movies and (slow burn/brainy) types of romances. A neighborhood gal pal and I had a good time!

[1] The acting works for the screenplay. While short, nothing is forced. Nothing is contrived, either. Everything that happens here doesn’t elicit any disbelief.

[2] This movie has the capacity to make you smile and laugh and feel contentment with its conclusion. I’d recommend a watch.

[3] It was nice to get a fresh take on an Austin-like writer, rather than as a retelling of one of her characters. As Agathe observes, Austen was the first writer to write women as humans, and idea which absolutely needs to be revisited in the current media world. This film successfully does that in making Agathe a messy and imperfect human in the best way.

-Excerpts from IMDb reviews