Nick Di Angelo is working in a Las Vegas casino to earn enough money to pursue the woman of his dreams, Lady Victoria Wingate, to Oxford, England. He believes the only way to win her is to get into Oxford University and join the rowing team. After spending the night with a beautiful older woman, he collects enough money to make the trip and arrives at Oxford in his small sporty car, which promptly gets stuck between two walls along a very narrow street. Thus begins Di Angelo's troubles in Britain.
Di Angelo is accepted into Oriel College; consequently, large parts of the film are set in the college itself.
The cox of the rowing team that Di Angelo joins, Rona, is also an American. Di Angelo quickly finds Lady Victoria but also finds that she is deeply involved with another Oxford rower, Colin Gilchrist Fisher, a member of Christ Church college.
Di Angelo comes to learn not only the value of friendship and love, but also the importance of keeping promises to teammates and to oneself as well as the importance of thinking beyond oneself.
The film was financed independently by Elliot Kastner. Kastner told Robert Boris he had between $2-3 million available to make a fil in England and wanted to know if Boris had any projects which might be suitable. Boris pitched him the movie and Kastner paid him to develop a script. Kastner liked the script and financed the film, although did not give Boris the funds the director requested to shoot additional films.[2]
Lowe recommended Princess Stephanie of Monaco for the role of Lady Victiroa as he had a crush on her. Enquiries were made but no response was received.[3]
The film was almost entirely shot on location in Oxford.
MGM paid $6 million for the rights to distribute the movie even though the film only cost $1.8 million. Kastner was also entitled to a $1 million fee at the discretion of Frank Yablans then head of MGM. Peter Bart, an executive at MGM at the time, called the deal unprecedented.[4]
