Review of An Education (2009) by Jonathan B — 15 May 2011

A movie based on the memoir of The Demon (Lynn) Barber's dalliance with an older man does somewhat jar with modern viewers and attitudes. It is the kind of story that you know is just not going to end well and having heard Barber herself interviewed about this period of her life, I knew what was coming.

It is a testament to the directorial skill of Lone Scherfig and the glorious performance by Carey Mulligan that the film maintains an air of innocence and hope and is far from seedy and tawdry.

We know that Peter Sarsgaard's character is no good from the moment he pulls up in his Bristol and offers a girl half his age a lift home. What unfolds is a tender account of a fiercely intelligent girl who is dazzled by a world of colour and excitement so different from her drab suburban life.

Mulligan is lovely in the lead and exudes sensitivity and vulnerability that makes her very endearing to watch. She is one of those rare actors who is able to convey genuine emotion with just a slight change of expression. This film could easily have been sensationalist and voyeuristic but with little more than an on screen kiss, it focuses on Mulligan's awe and delight rather than her exploitation.

If I have one criticism, it is that the realisation of the truth of the situation she finds herself in and it's fallout, does seem to be a little rushed which makes the ending seem a touch contrived. However, this is a lovely movie about a loss of innocence which manages to offer a ray of sunshine at the end.