Off to the Flicks

MTL didn’t fancy wearing 3D glasses so Avatar and Alice in Wonderland were off the menu. I thought An Education sounded interesting especially as it’s the film of a book written by journalist Lynn Barber about her life in the sixties when, as a teenager she fell in love with an older man and was actually encouraged by her parents. This is quite shocking as an Oxbridge education was on the cards for their daughter and the older man was involved in sleazy business with the notorious fifties landlord Rachman. Oh and he was married with children.

It was all delightfully familiar - I didn't partake so I remember the sixties -with the music of Juliette Greco, Jacque Brel and those exquisitely coloured cigarettes Balkan Sobranie. The love affair with France rang bells – as my boys use to say – teasing me:

‘If it’s French it MUST be good.’

Although I was in my thirties then I recognised the hopes and aspirations she had as a teenager (more proof of my arrested development - keeps you young though) and I

didn’t have an affair and go to Paris with an older man.

The acting – with one exception was Oscar worthy. Carey Mulligan as Jenny was

nominated as best actress. Peter Sarsgaard as David was convincing

as someone you’d ditch your ambitions for, Rosamund Pike was delightful as a vacuous blonde and Dominic Cooper as Danny completed the young quartet.

Emma Thomson selflessly played the unsympathetic head mistress.

I’m afraid I found Alfred Molina too dominant a personality for the role of the father. His extraordinary looks seemed out of place amongst such nuanced performances.

The film was just my cup of tea and succeeded in making me want to read the book.

Lynn Barber had to decide whether to tell all and risk upsetting her elderly parents,

now in their nineties in a retirement home. She felt she had been a dutiful daughter for 65 years and now was the time to tell her story – a decision most writers of memoirs have to face sooner or later.

MTL had his eyes closed every time I looked in spite of the occasional deafening bursts of sound – at the dog race – for instance. Why do they do that- it’s so jarring and completely unnecessary in such a film. There was a scene where the heroine was on a bus and I watched carefully as she rose to get off the bus – interested in what handbag she had and was surprised to see she had none but in the next scene – voila there it was. A mild lapse in continuity?

An Education had me - not quite in thrall – but thoroughly entertained. See photos below.