An Education

Woo hoo - a Best Picture Nominee!! After seeing this I have seen 8 of the 10 nominees.

This is a beautiful story. A 16 year old girl in 1960's England, bored with her mundane life, happens to meet a slightly older man who introduces her to all the fabulous things she's always dreamed about: seeing French films, listening to Jazz, wearing fancy clothes, going to art exhibits, etc. Her father is very strict and she has spent most of her life studying to get into Oxford, so this guy is a breath of fresh air for her. While experiencing this new life, you start to see her "mature" before your very eyes. Her parents are impressed and charmed by him, which only seals the deal further. Soon, an intimate physical relationship starts, and before she knows it she's in over her head. Does she marry him, or go to Oxford as was originally planned? Maybe she doesn't need to go to Oxford anymore because she already has a potential husband. But then what was all the studying for? I thought about these issues even the day after seeing this movie. "An Education" is such a fitting title, because she ends up with an education in school, in life, in love, and in herself. I'd say CHECK IT OUT, it's a beautiful story.