An Education (2009)

A coming-of-age story about a teenage girl in 1960s suburban London, and how her life changes with the arrival of a playboy nearly twice her age.

Director:

Lone Scherfig

Writers:

Lynn Barber (memoir), Nick Hornby (screenplay)

Stars:

Carey Mulligan, Peter Sarsgaard, Alfred Molina

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 36 wins & 93 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Carey Mulligan	...	Jenny Mellor
Olivia Williams	...	Miss Stubbs
Alfred Molina	...	Jack Mellor
Cara Seymour	...	Marjorie
William Melling	...	Small Boy
Connor Catchpole	...	Small Boy
Matthew Beard	...	Graham
Peter Sarsgaard	...	David Goldman
Amanda Fairbank-Hynes	...	Hattie
Ellie Kendrick	...	Tina
Dominic Cooper	...	Danny
Rosamund Pike	...	Helen
Nick Sampson	...	Auctioneer
Kate Duchêne	...	Latin Teacher (as Kate Duchene)
Bel Parker	...	Small Girl

Storyline

In the early 1960's, sixteen year old Jenny Mellor lives with her parents in the London suburb of Twickenham. On her father's wishes, everything that Jenny does is in the sole pursuit of being accepted into Oxford, as he wants her to have a better life than he. Jenny is bright, pretty, hard working but also naturally gifted. The only problems her father may perceive in her life is her issue with learning Latin, and her dating a boy named Graham, who is nice but socially awkward. Jenny's life changes after she meets David Goldman, a man over twice her age. David goes out of his way to show Jenny and her family that his interest in her is not improper and that he wants solely to expose her to cultural activities which she enjoys. Jenny quickly gets accustomed to the life to which David and his constant companions, Danny and Helen, have shown her, and Jenny and David's relationship does move into becoming a romantic one. However, Jenny slowly learns more about David, and by association ...

---

Plot Keywords:

1960s | age difference | coming of age | teenage girl | oxford | 

---

Taglines:

Innocence of the Young.

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material involving sexual content, and for smoking

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Japan]

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

5 February 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

Enseñanza de vida

Filming Locations:

20 Cumberland Terrace, Regents Park, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£4,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$159,017, 9 October 2009, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$12,574,715, 2 May 2010

Company Credits

Production Co:

BBC Films, Finola Dwyer Productions, Wildgaze Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

David's nickname for Jenny is pronounced and spelled in subtitles as "bubbalub". Since David is Jewish, possibly this was intended to be the Yiddish word "bubbalah", which means "honey" or "sweetie".

---

Goofs

In an early scene in which David and Jenny are having a conversation in his car, the lock on the car window behind Peter Sarsgaard keeps changing position.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Miss Stubbs: Come on, girls. Anybody?
[pauses]
Miss Stubbs: Anybody else?
[pauses]
Miss Stubbs: Jenny again.
Jenny: Isn't it because Mr. Rochester's blind?
Miss Stubbs: Yes, Jenny.

---

Connections

Featured in The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Hot Tub Time Machine/Chloe/How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

---

Soundtracks

Theme from 'A Summer Place'
Written by Max Steiner
Performed by Percy Faith

User Reviews

Well made, terrific acting

I was 14 years old in 1961, just a couple of years younger than the girl here. A couple of years later, I too was involved with an older married man. (But not to worry, the next year I entered hippiedom and all was very, very different.) What I'm trying to say is, "Been there, done that" … except in my case it was Evansville, Indiana and not London. Too bad. Anyway, I was not as sophisticated as this 16 year old (neither was he, by the way) but I reveled in the mystery and adventure of the adult world … also the lies and deceit. The thing is, now that I'm an Aging Hippy, Retired, the age difference of the girl/man couple disturbed me. I was also disturbed by the acceptance of the parents. The movie was well made, the actors do a terrific job, and it made me think. My reaction is my own personal bugaboo. Just thought I'd put it out there.