Just watched An Education, a film with a 95% “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a film that stands to be fondly remembered for several reasons.  First there is the engaging performance by newcomer Carey Mulligan, whom everyone is comparing to Audrey Hepburn after this, and she’s been nominated for an Oscar as best actress for her performance here.  And a terrific performance from Peter Sarsgaard, who does a very good job of walking the tightrope that his role demands.   The film is based on a brief memoir by British reporter Lynn Barber – you can read the original story here – and marks Nick Hornsby’s first adapted screenplay.  Director Lone Scherfig is a “graduate” of the Dogme 95 movement but she has clearly moved beyond that.

Here’s what casual viewers of the film might miss.  First, that it takes part in a very different era, an era before women’s liberation, an era where the glass ceiling for women was a lot lower than it was today and an era where “class” meant more than it does today.  It’s 1961 and a woman’s place is in the home and though Jenny is hoping to go to Oxford, her father sees that merely as a way for her to meet and marry a man of means.  It’s an era where it’s okay to publicly announce that one hates Jews and where one Jew takes advantage of overt racism to get rich.  So it functions as a time piece, a bit of bittersweet nostalgia, almost a Mad Man-ish look back at a time and attitudes that we’d like to think we’ve left behind (even if we really haven’t).

And perhaps more uncomfortably, it’s an era in which no one blinks at the notion of a thirty-something year old man dating a 16 year old schoolgirl – the parents perceive the man as worldly, sophisticated and rich and don’t protest even when he asks to take her away for a weekend because he represents another step, even a shortcut,  in the upward mobility they’re seeking for their daughter.   You know where this film is going, even if you don’t know the story, but it’s the way in which it gets there – the steady pacing and rhythm, the way in which it gradually unfolds and opens up like a flower or a puzzle box.  We see a 16 year old girl become an 18 year old older-but-wiser woman, her lesson about life and what really matters, and the final line, which I won’t give away here, that in just a few short words brilliantly sums up what she’s learned.

The film has received three Oscar nominations – best picture, best actress and best adapted screenplay and while it probably won’t win in any of those categories, the nominations are well-deserved.

Yesterday, as I mentioned, we watched Bodyguards and Assassins, the first half-way decent Hong Kong film not directed by Johnny To that I’ve seen in a few years.  Directed by Teddy Chan and produced by Peter Chan, this film stars almost everyone in Hong Kong cinema – Donnie Yen, Leon Lai, Tony Leung (Ka-fai), Nicholas Tse, Eric Tsang, Fan Bingbing, Jacky Cheung, Michelle Reis – but to a certain extent is stolen by mainland actor Wang Xueqi.   At any rate, it’s a halfway decent film because the first half is all history and family drama while the second half is a rolling series of kick-ass battles.

One problem is the story – it’s 1906 and Sun Yat-sen is making a visit to Hong Kong to plot the Chinese revolution.  The Empress Dowager sends a general to Hong Kong to plot Sun’s assassination.  Hong Kong people rally to protect Sun and eight heroes will give their lives to the cause.  The problem is that this story is 100% fiction!

On the other hand, one has to admire the producers.  They have made a film that has all the good guys pleading for democracy and has lead characters advocating violent revolution – and been able to get China financing and get the film on mainland screens – did the Chinese censors really not see the metaphor?   In the first half, I enjoyed the CGI effects to present views of Hong Kong as it may have looked 100 years ago.  In the second half, I enjoyed the expertly staged action scenes.   But like too many Hong Kong films, the direction is weak on exposition and overly strong on sentimentality and I had a hard time staying awake during the first half of the film.

So basically, if you like this kind of thing, then this is the kind of thing you’ll like.

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