‘A Year In London’ Movie Review – The Art Of Simple Loving

A Year in London starts like any other film faithful to the genre. A small town, gullible Olivia has to travel and study fashion for one year in London, the city of all cities. She is taken out of her safe environment, surrounded by family, a predictable boyfriend, and her mother tongue, to be thrown into mayhem, chaos and a load of unexpected feelings.

Olivia goes to study under her idol, iconic fashion designer Nina Clarke, and this is where the film picks up its pace because Melanie Liburd is stunning, mysterious, seductive, and unpredictable as Nina. Nina Pons as Olivia may not have to carry the weight of the film as much as Liburd, but that’s also due to the fact that Nina is the fleshier, more interesting character, the one we are not supposed to find relatable because she is too far out of reach. While Olivia reminds many people of their (hopefully) younger selves. But still, in the hands of a less adept actress than Liburd, Nina would lose her potency and rizz. She makes her enigmatic, and that’s not just because she’s a very beautiful actress, but because she layers the character with such delicious unpredictability. One can see Liburd playing a femme fatale in the near future because she truly has what it takes to embody that.

The plot itself moves slowly at first. There’s a bit of stalling before the action kicks in and the two leads start developing feelings for one another. That’s when sparks fly, and the same-sex romance fully blossoms. Given Nina’s mystique and darkness, it’s understandable why she is attracted to Olivia, whose only attractive quality is her naivete, which counteracts Nina’s layered character. It’s not distracting from the other points of strength in the film, but it makes it hard to understand why a powerfully written character like Nina would find anything remotely interesting in her Italian student. 

It’s not until the major event in the film—the violent robbery that changes everything and draws these two different women closer—that we understand why their relationship’s blossoming becomes a survival technique rather than a simple attraction. Director Flaminia Graziadei does a great job of staying faithful to the simplicity of the story. There’s no astounding camerawork or a signature directorial style that makes a critic’s eye curious to see what’s next. But that works in the film’s favor, even if it oversimplifies Graziadei’s work. However, one can’t ignore the fact that the climax of the film—the robbery—is shot very poorly and is rather disappointing, especially since reading the synopsis builds up such hype for it for the viewer, most notably those struggling with the film’s slow pace.

This is why Liburd’s performance and screen presence become more and more influential and crucial to the enjoyment of the filmgoing experience. One can’t take their eyes off her. Her magnetism and her complex portrayal of Nina make up for the other elements lacking depth and richness in the film, especially Pons as Olivia. 

The trauma bonding between the two women makes up for the lack of chemistry between the characters, even if both actresses hold it so well in front of the camera. It’s no one’s fault, but Nina’s journey as a comeback artist and a very elaborate woman with a torrid relationship history outshines Olivia’s coming-of-age story in the big city. It definitely factors in, making it difficult for viewers not to notice how giant the gap between the character arcs is, and how the Nina scenes are more vibrant and fleshier than the Olivia ones.

A Year in London draws one in with its simple but delicious lesbian love story, but there’s more to it than watching two beautiful women sensually connect on screen. It may not reinvent the wheel, but it’s also a tale of an intricate artist’s yearning for innocence in a chaotic world.

A Year in London is currently playing in UK & Irish cinemas. 

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