an education

"an education" is a true story based on the lynn barber book about an episode in her teen years in which she and all around her learned many different lessons. nick hornby ("about a boy") wrote the screenplay and did a good job of keeping the movie sweet by rounding off some of the edges in barber's book.  "an education" is set in provincial england, on a street of row houses, about a middle class family who's sole focus in life is to get their bright, talented, only daughter into oxford.  the sad result of all this good education would be a position as a teacher, civil servant or a good marriage. but the girl has bigger dreams of a life in paris, listening to jazz, purchasing art, reading existentialism and smoking fancy french cigarettes- above all, having fun.  all of which seem like pipe dreams until older man david comes along and makes all these dreams come true.

carey mulligan is perfect as, jenny, the little girl who plays at being a young woman only to find herself a little girl again yet more grown up than her parents. she wears all of it very well.  peter skarsgaard is one of my favorite actors plays the predatory charmer who almost has himself under his own spell.  alfred molina as the spineless father is a little over the top.  rosamund pike does a scary believable job as the vacuous and decorous girlfriend of david's hip business partner played by dominic cooper- love him!.  emma thompson is dead on as the dead end head mistress of jenny's all girl school and olivia williams is convincing as the favorite teacher who wants more for her.

the clothes are wonderful, the hair and makeup are 60's funtastic. what's not fun is the stark reminder just how limited women's options were in the 60's. and how in their eagerness to see jenny married, which would, of course, make oxford unnecessary and thus negating her whole life's purpose, her parents failed miserably to protect and guide her.

if you don't see this in the theaters, put it on your rent list.