Review: An Education

World Hues

This has been one of the most elusive and, conversely, sought after films of this year for me. For the life of me, I'm not certainly sure why. The premise for the film is certainly not something completely out of the ordinary and upon first glance, at least from the trailer, it looks like a pretty tame presentation. Well, after a month of bitching to myself, the film has finally arrived at an easily accessible theatre. This isn't groundbreaking cinema by any measure, but this is a mostly well crafted piece of filmmaking that offers an intriguing story flushed out by its equally enjoyable characters.

Budding new breakout star Carey Mulligan has the leading role of Jenny. Jenny is the only child in a middle class, British home in 1961. Her restrictive parents (Alfred Molina, Cara Seymour), as well as her literary school teacher (Olivia Williams) hammer into her a strict schedule of school, music and language so that it all can lead to a hopeful destination towards acceptance at Oxford. She begrudgingly goes along with their plans until she one day runs into the stranger David (Peter Sarsgaard) in the rain. From there, David introduces her to a world outside of rigorous study: a world filled with expensive dinners, lavish gowns and culture at every turn alongside David's friends Danny (Dominic Cooper) and Helen (Rosamund Pike).

Nick Hornby is a well known writer both in the literary and Hollywood circles, but he's mostly known in the latter because of the former. Many of Hornby's published works have been turned into films (About a Boy, High Fidelity, Fever Pitch), but Hornby hasn't had too much practice at actual screenwriting. Here, he gets the chance and allows the story to unfold into some rich areas. It's all a bit rushed and awkward at the beginning, the story wanting desperately to leave the exposition, but soon the right rhythm is set and breathing room is established for the characters to develop. Hornby offers that usual light, British charm but also allows the script to become a meditation on '60s rebellion, generational hypocrisy and personal conflicts.

However, while the screenplay falters here and there, while mostly succeeding, the direction has a hard time finding the right place to strike. This is Danish director Lone Scherfig's first English language film, and while I am not familiar with her body of work, there is something about the execution here that feels off. It's not simply the problems of the beginning's rushed pace or the film's unwillingness to give up near the end. It's more basic problems like continuity mistakes in the editing and scenery. While they are simple slip-ups, it takes you completely out of the film and starts you on a direction away from the story. I have to say the direction is the weakest part because it feels rather amateurish, which is sad to say of someone as accomplished as her. Perhaps the old adage "practice makes perfect" applies here.

Mulligan has been getting a lot of press for her performance, and it is certainly well served. While the twenty-three year old (at the time) actress doesn't always seem like a sixteen-year-old, she fortunately has the talent to make you believe in a young body that is forced to grow up very quickly even when she emotionally isn't at that stage. Mulligan does a fantastic job at capturing the paradoxical mixture of certainty and confusion that propels her forward. She doesn't hit a single wrong note in this performance. Sarsgaard fits comfortably with an English accent, and lets David become a figure whose charm is easy to be distracted by and never becomes someone to fear. The same goes a bit to Molina, whose fatherly figure is never cartoonishly cruel and even allows a great emotional complexity to sink in. There are also nice supporting performances from Cooper and Pike, with Cooper providing a good amount of subtext and intrigue in his performance to allow admiration and Pike providing a real scene stealer of a comedic turn.

It's certainly not a flawless film, and you can even see some of those flaws as the film is being shown in front of you. However, the film is most certainly saved by a terrific ensemble, that also includes a brief appearance by Emma Thompson as the school's headmistress, as well as a script that is equal parts deep sophistication and light wit. The one film that always seemed to escape my grasp has finally landed, and I have caught it. Now there's only about a dozen more before the end is out. ***1/2 / ****; GRADE: B+