Why My Oxford Year falls flat next to 2000s dramas like A Walk to Remember— because heartbreak needs more heart

Romantic tragedies draw a fanbase, for those who are drawn to long, profound, and sorrowful love stories.

To paraphrase the quote from the K-Drama Goblin, there’s something about such yearning. Perhaps, that’s why most of us watch it: We like seeing the extent to which people go to be with each other, even if their fate is already written. The formula is usually brutally straightforward: One has an illness, and the other spends the rest of their lives making them laugh, when they can’t even smile. In the case of Fault in Our Stars, both are ill, perhaps twisting the knife further. Some films succeed in moving us to tears; others, less so.

After the rather tepid My Oxford Year, which felt like a half-hearted execution at best, stifling the profound intensity Cory Mylchereest had already shown in a similar role in Queen Charlotte, it felt necessary to revisit earlier films in the same vein. As you scroll through the list of tragic dramas, you come across Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin’s Me Before You, and then the painful Five Feet Apart, starring Cole Sprouse.

The scrolling journey continues, and then you stop at A Walk to Remember. Ah, the early 2000s. Starring Mandy Moore and Shane West in the lead roles, you return to a time when melodrama did exist: But it was with so much flair and heart, that your heart did twinge. The story followed a straightforward formula, a format that would now spawn a million parody reels: Cool tough guy, falling in love with soft nerdy girl, who has a terminal illness. Study groups, a play, and bang, feelings bloom. Tough guy isn’t so tough anymore, you know the rules.

But this was a time, when such tropes were not just fresh, it was what die-hard romantics wanted. Moreover, this was one of the rare cases when the ‘bad boy’ wasn’t a toxic cesspool, and just thought he was too cool for people. Fair.

Yet, despite its soapiness, it was the true epitome of a tragic melodrama—somehow infused with hope as well. It belonged to the 2000s, of course, and could never be made the same way today, but it had heart, shining through even the cheesiest lines like, “You’re scared because you want to be with me too,” and the familiar rejection, “I’m too sick, go live your life”—though you know he really won’t.

 It might not have been as pretty and asthetic looking as My Oxford Year, but it was filled with a different life and soul, from Mandy Moore’s quiet, timid yet strangely fierce expressions, to West slowly softening.

The words were genuinely earnest and moreover it was backed by a soundtrack, that just amped up the drama. (Dare You To Move, every 90's teenager's angst)

The ending was predictable, yet it still managed to convince you that, in its own way, it was a happy one—because they had found each other.

 Must repeat: Ah, the 2000s.

But, cannot say the same for My Oxford Year. Sofia Carson’s personality appeared too contrived with very stilted dialogues. For instance: she suddenly abandons her fiercely independent persona, plan and decides that her one goal in life is to to pursue her professor. What starts as random sparring quickly turns into attempts to make him jealous and win his attention. Their relationship unfolds through montages of them ‘having fun,’ but none of it truly connects with the audience.

 Maybe it’s better as a family drama, as it was only the emotional scenes between the father and a son that had an impact. The confessions of love felt rather awkward and out of place, and her standing at the bus stop yelling at the top of her voice quoting poets felt odd and disorienting.

It didn’t need A Walk to Remember–style melodrama, but it did need genuine conviction and soul—not just the beauty of Oxford.