AN EDUCATION REVIEW

AN EDUCATION
Director: Lone Scherfig
Cast: Carey Mulligan, Peter Sarsgaard, Alfred Molina
Screenplay: Nick Hornby
Running Time: 95 min
Rating: M
***/*****

YOU MIGHT BE A LITTLE LOST AS TO THE LESSON, BUT STILL GLAD YOU WENT TO CLASS ANYWAY

An Education is a flawed yet cracking little independent gem that makes for one of the more enjoyable and original film experiences of the year.

The film chronicles the girl to woman transformation of sixteen year old wannabe sophisticate Jenny (Mulligan). Upon meeting the much older David (Sarsgaard) Jenny is introduced to a high rolling world filled with culture and glamour far beyond her wildest dreams. Jenny must soon decide whether her new lifestyle is worth sacrificing her academic ambitions for.

Based on a memoir by Lynn Barber, An Education explores the themes of first love, social expectations and femininity in the 60's in both a smart and entertaining manner. It's sociopolitical subtext of the plight of women during the era never comes across as preachy or takes away from the more comedic aspects of the film.

Director Lone Sherfig's recreation of swinging 60's London is so vibrant and visually pleasing that, like Jenny, you can't help but be swept up in the magic of the atmosphere. Sherfig's film is well constructed and well paced, whilst managing to evoke the feeling of a film from Hollywood's golden era. Whilst the narrative is maintained effectively throughout, it's themes are slightly lost due to some poor casting choices.

While An Education attempts to chronicle the coming of age of school girl Jenny, due to the mis-casting of Carey Mulligan in the lead there is no discernible coming of age evident. It is certainly not due to lack of talent, as it is obvious that Mulligan possesses the acting chops and screen presence of someone destined to become a major star. The problem is that Mulligan portrays Jenny so sophisticated, confident, sensible and worldly wise right from the get go, that the character never seems to undergo any sort of discernible change or personal growth. The only difference between Jenny the school girl and Jenny the sophisticate is a new hairstyle and some impressive haute couture. Because Jenny oozes this maturity and wisdom from the start, it is even more inconceivable that she would be swept of her feet so easily by by David, especially considering that Jenny always comes across as far more intelligent and charismatic than him. This is partly the fault of Peter Saarsgard who is fatally miscast as David in the fact that he does not possess the charm or charisma to make you believe that Jenny would consider throwing away her academic dreams for him. The pair are severely lacking in chemistry and apart from possessing the financial means to provide Jenny with her dream lifestyle, David does not appear to be exceptional or interesting in any other way that would make him appealing to a young girl of Jenny's intellect.

The supporting cast fare much better. Alfred Molina is brilliant as Jenny's well intentioned but misguided Father, providing much of the comedic relief as well as some of the more poignant moments of the film. Cara Seymour delivers a beautifully understated performance as Jenny's mother with Emma Thompson and Olivia Williams making notable turns as the teaching faculty at Jenny's school. Also well cast is Rosamund Pike and Dominic Cooper as Davids glamorous friends. Pike plays the blond bimbo to subtle perfection whilst Cooper plays jack the lad Danny with such a fun, sleazy charm that you can't help but thinking that the movie would have fared better if Cooper reversed his role with Saarsgard.

Nick Hornby's script is fast paced and witty. The snappy dialogue contains a unique mixture of light and dark sentiments to keep An Education an intriguing tale. Whilst most scenes are well thought out, the film comes across as rather hastily thrown together towards the end. The much talked about trip to Paris consists of a two minute montage and the conclusion of the film seems rather abrupt and forced.

Costume designer Odile Dicks-Mireaux is in much need of an Academy Award nomination for providing designs reminiscent of the garments adorning Hollywood legends such as Audrey Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor. The style and sophistication of the costumes surpass any other film in recent years and deserves to be recognised.

All things considered An Education is a good film that is almost great but had the potential to be exceptional. But in a marketplace littered with shiteous romcoms, dull action offerings and torture porn, it is definately one of the more smarter choices for your movie dollar. THREE OUT OF FIVE STARS.