An EducationMovie Reviews

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Must Go!
Avg. Critic Score: 85 out of 100 Universal acclaim Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
14 Iffy for 14+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 100
    Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert

    This happens in 1961, when 16-year-old girls were a great deal less knowing than they are now. Yet the movie isn't shabby or painful, but romantic and wonderfully entertaining. Read full review

  • 100
    Los Angeles Times | Kenneth Turan

    This is a performance, and a film, to cherish for this year and always. Read full review

  • 91
    Entertainment Weekly | Lisa Schwarzbaum

    Afterward, you'll want to listen to the Beatles sing ''She's Leaving Home.'' It might be a girl like Jenny the lads had in mind. Read full review

  • 90
    The Hollywood Reporter | James Greenberg

    Topped by a fine cast, a first-rate script by Nick Hornby and tight direction by Lone Scherfig, the film is a smart, moving but not inaccessible entry in the coming-of-age canon. Read full review

  • 88
    USA Today | Claudia Puig

    Through stellar performances, clever writing and exquisite cinematography, the story is fresh and thoroughly captivating. Read full review

  • 88
    Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

    An Education is remarkable for the traps it doesn't fall into. Jenny, for all her naive impulses, isn't a victim. Read full review

  • 80
    The New York Times | A.O. Scott

    If in hindsight An Education might make you a little queasy, it is hard to resist, like David himself. Read full review

  • 80
    Variety | Todd McCarthy

    Carey Mulligan shines in a captivating performance. Read full review

  • 75
    Washington Post |

    A beguiling little film that, with deceptive restraint and forthrightness, opens up worlds of roiling, contradictory emotions. Read full review

  • 75
    San Francisco Chronicle | Mick LaSalle

    Hornby's humane and humorous screenplay is true to the film's title: In short order, young Jenny finds out important truths about identity, glamour and how adults really think and live. Read full review

View more reviews for An Education on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says Iffy for 14+ Intelligent period drama tackles mature teen topics.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that this smart 1960s-set drama written by popular author Nick Hornby explores a teenager's efforts to define her future, which includes making a mess of her well-laid plans -- most notably by becoming involved in a relationship with a sophisticated man nearly twice her age. Virginity, education, class -- they’re all up for discussion and questioning. These are mature themes, but older teens should get a lot out of the movie. There's some sexual content (implied nudity and intercourse, kissing, and some risque discussion), as well as some era-accurate social drinking and smoking.
  • Families can talk about how the movie portrays teen sexuality. How different do you think that depiction would be if the movie was set today, instead of in the '60s?
  • What is the movie saying about the value of education? Does book learning always trump real-life adventure, or is life not that simple?
  • What do you think of Jenny’s apparent change-of-heart about pursuingOxford? Why does she seem ready to forgo what she's worked for topursue a fling with a much older man (who may, in fact, not be exactlywho she thinks he is)?
The good stuff
  • message true2 Positive messages: The film pits classroom education vs. real-world experiences -- but in the end, life demands a far more complex solution. Nevertheless, the importance of knowledge-seeking is made very clear, especially in the way it elevates the status of women.
  • rolemodels true2 Positive role models: Jenny is admirable in many ways, especially her thirst for knowledge and respect for book learning. Realistically for a teenager, she's also impulsive and drawn to what is mysterious and possibly dangerous -- perhaps not literally, but emotionally (she’ll also fib to get what she wants sometimes). Still, she's able to face her mistakes and herself when necessary. Her parents are both permissive and controlling, which contributes to the situation in which she finds herself -- but they clearly love her.
What to watch for
  • violence false0 Violence: A couple argues loudly; two guys pilfer a map from a house and brusquely instruct their girlfriends to jump in the car.
  • sex false3 Sex: A man in his 30s courts a 16-year-old virgin. In one scene, he asks to see her breasts, and she acquiesces -- there’s no nudity, but she's shown opening her blouse. Later, they have sex, though they're only shown after the fact. Some kissing and much flirting. There’s also a somewhat frank discussion about intercourse and a risqué joke about a banana.
  • language false2 Language: “Bloody hell,” “idiot,” and “stupid.”
  • consumerism false1 Consumerism: Car, cigarette, and perfume brands (like Chanel) that evoke luxury are mentioned or shown.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false2 Drinking, drugs and smoking: A 16-year-old smokes French cigarettes (Gauloises). Some social drinking.
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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