A massive YA franchise gets a British makeover with My Fault: London – streaming on Prime Video from Feb 13. Calling it an English-language remake would sell it a bit short, writes Liam Maguren, who argues it’s more of a reinvigoration.
Two years ago, YA Spanish flick Culpa Mía (My Fault) proved itself a global hit on Prime Video with its sequel, Culpa Tuya (Your Fault), releasing a year later. You’d be forgiven for thinking the latest film in the franchise would be an adaptation of Culpa Nuestra (Our Fault), the third book in Mercedes Ron’s Culpability trilogy.
But this new film, My Fault: London, is no sequel, and to call it an English-language remake would be to sell it a bit short. Consider it more a reinvigoration of Ron’s Wattpad phenomenon.
Asha Banks, last seen in the BBC’s A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, takes half of the centre stage as Noah, an 18-year-old American fresh off a plane from Florida to start a new life in London. Her mum’s married up to a polite, wealthy British man who graciously welcomes them to his mansion of a home.
Getting a tour of the place, her gaze lingers off into the distance and towards her new stepbrother Nick (The Buccaneers’ Matthew Broome), who Phoebe Cates his way out of the pool. “Nice view, huh,” her mum blurts out, innocently referring to the picturesque British vista and not the picturesque torso her daughter was ogling.
Despite Noah and Nick being made from seemingly the same Good Looking People factory, they do not kick things off well. Their very first conversation couldn’t be more venomous, a real joust of egos hiding the fact that they’re both not comfortable with this sudden change in their lives. But they’re both plagued by dark pasts, and as they come to realise this about one another, a shared vulnerability takes place of their initial disdain.
Anyone old enough to get the aforementioned reference to Fast Times at Ridgemont High will more-or-less know what’s coming. But for the film’s target audience, namely younger Gen Zers, My Fault: London has every chance of being that teen movie they’ll remember being obsessed with.
It’s clearly what directors Charlotte Fassler and Dani Girdwood are aiming for, with the Phoebe Cates pool scene being one of two key references to the film’s ultimate mission. The other, a much more direct nod to Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, sets the intent in stone—My Fault: London is classic teenage escapism.
Noah isn’t one to take in the stink of rich privilege, happy to needle Nick with nepo baby negs. But she also recognises that she and her mum have kinda hit the jackpot, rocking a dress she knows she looks good in while also trying her best to contain her inner petrolhead from geeking out when she enters Nick’s McLaren.
It’s not easy balancing social consciousness with the indulgence of wealth, but My Fault: London hits that Crazy Rich Asians sweet spot.
And, look, the film isn’t trying to hide that this is all a little bit of a fantasy. Seeing the pair hoon down the notoriously gridlocked streets of London in an unscratched sports car should tell anyone that this doesn’t take place in the real world.
Full credit to Banks and Broome though—they sell the drama and do plenty to make their characters a likeable pair, even when they greatly dislike each other. It pays off when sparks fly and steam rises between them, fogging up the stepsibling line that divides them. (Though, as far as taboos go, it’s definitely one of the lighter ones.)
Like Fast Times, My Fault: London contains an intimate pool scene that—to put it tastefully—will be remembered. But unlike Fast Times, it isn’t solely playing to the fantasies of teenage boys.
There is an element to My Fault: London that flirts with the problematic—and frankly cliched—idea of a girl “reforming” the bad boy, one that sees Nick participate in underground bareknuckle boxing. While it doesn’t cleanly swerve away from that tired trope, it avoids the worst of it by making one thing clear: Noah isn’t looking to change him, he needs to change himself.
Ultimately, the fighting adds to the somewhat fantastical sense of danger that My Fault: London presents. Though it’s not as strong or as exciting as the danger of Fast & Furious-ing around London in a McLaren or snogging your hot stepbrother.
My Fault: London’s thrills are heightened from reality just enough to make them cushy forbidden zones, tuned with a deep consideration for its older teenage audience. It also doesn’t hurt to have an instant save-to-playlist soundtrack which includes Banks’ sensual Beggin for Thread and Troye Sivan’s horndog anthem Rush.
