ENGLISH ROSE: a review of "An Education"

This review was originally written November 22, 2009

“AN EDUCATION” Directed by Lone Scherfig Screenplay by Nick Hornby based upon a memoir by Lynn Barber
***1/2 (three and a half stars)

More often than not, my initial reactions to films tend to be instantaneous upon their conclusions. Positively, negatively or somewhere in the middle, I just know how a particular story reached and affected me. However, I have to admit there is a certain charming pull of the film that doesn’t fully reveal itself to me, until either in its final moments or even after I have left the theatre and have begun to ruminate over what I had seen. The treasures that danced upon the screen that I didn’t quite see as they occurred. The themes that eluded me on introduction. “An Education,” directed by Lone Scherfig is one of those films. Quietly unassuming as I watched but deeply complex, emotionally and thematically once I begun making my trek homewards. And as I write, and as the film continues to resonate, I am realizing more and more how much of a gift this film actually is.

The setting is 1961 on a sleepy street in suburban London. We meet Jenny (Casey Mulligan), a 16-year-old student with a chance to win a scholarship to Oxford. Yet, Jenny is also nursing big dreams of escaping her humdrum life for perceived brighter pastures of falling into the greatest works of literature and art, as well as the sophisticated lifestyle that goes along with French films, smoking cigarettes in bars and jaunts to Paris—the French language being something she lapses into from time to time. On a rainy day, Jenny gains her deepest wishes through a chance meeting with David (Peter Sarsgaard), a handsome middle-aged man with a flashy car, well-trimmed expensive suits and an income of discreet means. He gives Jenny a ride home and by the ride’s end, he has invited her to hear a concerto of Ravel’s music in the heart of London. One date leads to more at jazz clubs, pricey art auctions, an afternoon at the races and introductions to David’s mature social set. Their romance deepens and even culminates in a dreamy getaway to Paris—a wish fulfillment for the wide-eyed girl who yearns for a grand life beyond the simple, the everyday, the seemingly pointless grind and toil of schooling and the people who educate her.

By now, you may be wondering where her parents stand in all of this. Jenny’s parents are loving, while her Father (beautifully portrayed by Alfred Molina) is more on the thrifty, overly cautious and demonstrative side. While also having high hopes for Jenny’s successful transition to Oxford, they too are easily swayed and seduced by David’s charms and perceived wealth and keys to a larger and more experienced and cultivated world. As the story progresses, Jenny’s grades begin to slide, her actions grow more rebellious to the dismay of her English teacher and prim Headmistress (played respectively by Olivia Williams and Emma Thompson), truths are unearthed and consequences must be faced.

While nothing in the film is overly dramatic or revelatory, the film gracefully shows a young woman on the cusp of transformation. In many ways, this film reminded me very much of Paul Brickman’s “Risky Business,” a film that has not only stood the test of time but has broadened with its perceptive nature. That film exuded qualities and questions of how there are no shortcuts in a growing life of maturity and as temptations bombard you, how much of your soul are you willing to compromise to attain all you desire. By the conclusion of “Risky Business,” Joel Goodson (Tom Cruise) indeed realizes his dreams of attending Princeton but at what cost? The film asks of us and of Joel, who is the real prostitute, Lana the hooker (Rebecca De Mornay) or Joel himself?

“An Education” is equally perceptive regarding Jenny, as she often appears to be older than she is, through her carriage, insightfulness and ease with sliding into a foreign world. Yet, as the story takes dramatic turns, her desires of a mature life are called into question. If you are mature enough for the jazz clubs, the expensive art auctions and Parisian jaunts, then are you mature enough to face the consequences for the life altering choices you have made?

There is also the nature of the film’s romance as it is filled with refined thematic elements. You can easily see the draw the two have for each other, despite the inappropriateness. For Jenny, a life with David fulfills her every desire yet she questions whether that life will come with sacrifices she can endure. For David, Jenny is a mold to be shaped. He can have a certain amount of control through the experience Jenny does not yet possess. He can always be in the role of teacher, guide, and expert, leading her from one excursion to the next and he also has the power to take it all away at a moment’s notice. Is David honestly attracted to Jenny? Is Jenny complicit in David’s deceptions as well as the ones to herself? It is a delicate balance held together firmly through the two leading performances.

Peter Sarsgaard has always been a face I have looked forward to seeing ever since I first noticed him in the film “Shattered Glass” where he played a news magazine editor on the trail of discovering the truth about Hayden Christensen’s fraudulent star writer. (I strongly recommend you seek it out if you haven’t seen that film.) With this film, he elicits one of his finest performances with a character who is by turns inviting, creepy, pathetic, worldly, needy and shadowy. You somehow never want to stone the screen or scream to this girl to run as far as she is able away from him. He gives a performance full of intrigue and you can understand how Jenny and her parents are drawn to him.

Much has been written about Casey Mulligan’s performance as Jenny, and I would have to agree. She does indeed at times evoke the image of Audrey Hepburn during her iconic role in “Breakfast At Tiffany’s,” but it is no imitation. It is not a showy performance either. It is a thoughtfully quiet performance that feels supremely effortless, natural and lived in and by the film’s conclusion, I was won over by her exquisiteness.

Special mention must be given to Alfred Molina who gives a performance of shared humor and sadness. He reminded me of Paul Dooley’s classic Father from Peter Yates’ “Breaking Away,” with his gruff demands for Jenny’s school excellence and speeches concerning the scarcity of the family income (one speech in particular about the variety of “money trees” behind the family home is priceless). He too shows unexpected sides, as he also must confront his own wishes and fears of what a life outside of Twickenham may entail.

The empathetic screenplay by Nick Hornby (one of my favorite authors), is as detailed, astute and intuitive as his books. Hornby has consistently found ways to explore the theme of how art speaks to us, defines us and assists us in understanding ourselves and he does so again with this adaptation. Jenny finds new ways to try to connect with those outside of her standard social structure through her deep love of art, music, literature and the like yet Hornby probes deeper, allowing us to explore her choices and consequences just as the character does. Lone Scherfig’s direction remains as beautifully attentive to period details as it is to the characters and their motivations. The style is not flashy. It remains focused, in control and clean, yet emotionally messy to an appropriate degree.

Last week, I reviewed the film “Pirate Radio,” and while I did have some affection towards it, it was not an entirely successful affair. “An Education” could possibly be a companion piece to that film as it depicts a country at a specific point in time, in this case a time when The Beatles and The Rolling Stones had not yet been unleashed upon the public. Jenny’s restless spirit not only echoes the restless spirits of teenagers everywhere but possibly of an equally restless country, whether it knew it or not.

What an amazing film “Pirate Radio” could have been if Scherfig and Hornby were at the helm or in collaboration with that film’s director, Richard Curtis. Thankfully, we do have “An Education,” and through their wit and empathy, I think it is a film that will slowly works its way into your heart just as it did mine.