An Education

In contrast to The Hurt Locker, this was a film in which I identified with or related to each character, even though I am no more a bright 16-year-old schoolgirl in 1961 London than I am a bomb disposal specialist in Iraq. As a big fan of novelist and screenwriter Nick Hornby, I went in highly predisposed to find this film right on my own wavelength, and I came out a big, big fan of Carey Mulligan in the lead role, bedazzled as everyone else seems to be. The Audrey Hepburn comparisons are not out of line. Peter Saarsgard’s recessive mix of charm and guile is perfect for the role of a gentle seducer of a girl half his age. The supporting roles are all spot on, from Alfred Molina as the girl’s father to Emma Thompson in two brief but telling scenes as a headmistress. Not only are all the characters clearly and deeply drawn, but so is the time and place -- England on the cusp between postwar austerity and the Swinging Sixties. And the implicit moral dilemmas are honestly faced. Like it’s adorable but flawed heroine, this film is funny and smart, moving and meaningful. Chastely directed by Dogme 95 veteran Lone Scherfig, An Education delivers truth, humor, and feeling without pyrotechnics. (2009, Images.) *8* (MC-85.)