Reviewed: An Education

(This review can also be found on http://www.mondomagazine.net/)

An Education is one of TIFF 2009’s opening night films. The film takes the standard coming-of-age tale and breathes new life into it. An Education features a fantastic ensemble cast and a clever screenplay adaptation by writer Nick Hornby, and directed by Lone Scherfig.

Jenny, a bright girl on the verge of leaving her childhood behind as she turns 17, finds herself drawn to the charismatic and handsome older man, David. The bookwormish and gung-ho student gets drawn into David’s lavish lifestyle of supper clubs, museum visits, and romantic trips to Paris. Jenny’s immature and mousy school-boy suitor is suddenly passé, as is her dreams of studying at Oxford. Why study a dead language like Latin, only to become a civil servant to the British government when you can live the jet-setting high life instead?

David is part of the well-heeled crowd, offering a life of luxury, which will have most women swooning in five minutes flat. Of course, as Jenny soon realizes, things aren’t always as they seem, and she soon finds herself not only questioning David, but also her own dreams, desires, and identity.

Moodily set in 1960s London, England, An Education dances along at a decent tempo, keeping the storyline interesting and providing some unexpected laughs. Based on an autobiographical memoir by journalist Lynn Barber, writer Nick Hornby of About a Boy and High Fidelity fame works his magic again on the screenplay to create a very interesting and adult reflection on the desires and thoughts of a young girl. Witty and engaging, Hornby keeps the dialogue light and moving, giving the actors fully formed characters to play.

Relative unknown actress Carey Mulligan takes on the role as the naïve and precocious Jenny. A refreshing actress, Mulligan plays Jenny perfectly, echoing the cockiness-meets-bashfulness of a 17 year old girl, about to take her first steps outside the school system. Jenny’s innocence is wonderfully set against that of her older beau David played by Peter Sarsgaard. Always charismatic, Sarsgaard walks that fine line between charming and smarmy, a niche that has worked well for the actor and suits his role as David to a T. Alfred Molina becomes a scene stealer as Jenny’s father. Emma Thompson is clever as the headmistress although her screen time is short-lived. Rounding out the ensemble cast are Dominic Cooper, Olivia Williams, and Sally Hawkins.

The film borders two separate eras: that of the middle class London, sleepily emerging from the 1950s, and that of the glamorous 1960s popularized in television’s Mad Men. Although An Education wholly takes place in the early 1960s, the time pre-dates the era of the swinging sixties in London, where women were still wholly defined by and financially dependent on their husbands. The dichotomy between the two eras is a perfect metaphor for Jenny as she is caught between childhood and womanhood, school and freedom. The set design of the 1960s supper clubs are to die for. You can almost taste the smoke hanging in the air, surrounding the beautiful people sipping cocktails and listening to French music.

Director Lone Scherfig puts all the pieces together to create a mesmerizing film, full of unexpected turns, making An Education a must-see film.