Customer Reviews

An Education

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Hey, Amazon! "An Education" is not based on a novel by Nick Hornby. It's a screenplay by Nick Hornby based on a memoir -- a factual story, not a novel -- by the writer Lynn Barber. Moreover, Jenny's abandonment of her university plans is NOT meant with consternation by her father. I won't spoil the movie by saying what his reaction is, but your summary is incorrect on a pretty crucial plot point.

I didn't own the CD when I first wrote the review, but I bought it for my wife and it is extremely enjoyable. (So this is a revision.) The original soundtrack material reflects the moody disquiet that underlies the story, and the period music is wonderful, especially the opening theme, a Floyd Cramer instrumental. You will also enjoy Mel Torme, Ray Charles, Vince Guaraldi, Madeleine Peyroux and the new song by Duffy that runs over the credits. It's the kind of pop music that probably dominated the airwaves in London in the years just prior to the Liverpool explosion -- decidedly mature, as the main character hopes to be, rather than a celebration of brash youth, which is what the Beatles represented. This was when cool equalled jazz and chansons en Francais. Very strong.

I saw the movie, dug the music and this does not disappoint. Really great music, a nice variety of tunes. Mel Torme and Duffy, that's just fun!

This is one of the best soundtrack albums I've ever purchased. It's a combination of smart retro with a French vibe. I like it, my 25 year old daughter likes it, and my 15 year old god-daughter likes it. Something for everyone!

Well the movie really made my skin crawl, but the soundtrack is phenomenal. An excellent selection of songs and vocal artists.

This soundtrack is a great snapshot of early 60's music. (pre-British Invasion) I bought the soundtrack so that I could get the song by Duffy "Smoke Without Fire" which she wrote for this movie, but all the cuts are worth listening to over and over.

As a film, the central conceit of Nick Hornby's, An Education is, for an alleged piece of non-fiction, breathtakingly vacant - a 16 y/o Oxford-aspiring cellist in 1961 London lives under the suffocating authority of her provincial, dilatant father - who suddenly and inexplicably has very little to say when she takes up with a thirty, forty-something cad, cum playboy, creepily (and expertly) inhabited by Peter Skarsgard. At forty-five minutes in, while I became numb to the implausibility of the story-line, the absolutely sublime, pre-Mod, pre-Invasion soundtrack became more than ample consolation for the screenwriter's suspension of reality meanderings.

As with all great soundtracks, the meticulous fusion of jazz, R&B and French Torch creates an adrenaline-blues aerie that perfectly captures time, place and emotion. In the case of An Education it can certainly be argued that the all-star assemblage of Mel Torme, Brenda Lee, Juliette Greco, Ray Charles, Percy Faith and Madeline Peyroux may, in fact, be the story's most believable characters.

A stunner of a soundtrack and a must have!

A coming-of-age drama set in England in the 1960s, An Education stars Carey Mulligan as Jenny, a precocious 16-year-old schoolgirl with a talent for playing the cello, who falls in with a crowd of socially privileged, upper class friends, who want to expose her to a richer, more fulfilling cultural life than her drab suburban life would otherwise allow. Gradually, and despite the misgivings of her staid father (Alfred Molina), Jenny falls for the suave and charismatic David (Peter Sarsgaard), who despite being twice her age, promises her a better life. However, the more Jenny finds out about David and his companions, and specifically how they make their money, the more she has to make difficult choices.

The film, which is directed by Danish filmmaker Lone Scherfig from Nick Hornby's popular novel and co-stars Olivia Williams, Dominic Cooper, Rosamund Pike and Emma Thompson, has been critically lauded on both sides of the Atlantic, and looks set to feature prominently at the 2009 Academy Awards. The film's score is by English composer Paul Englishby, writing the second major score of his career after having spent several years as an arranger and orchestrator in the British film industry.

His five tracks amount to just over 11 minutes of original score, and are mainly based in the piano and strings idiom, and play in quiet counterpoint to Jenny's romantic adventures. "David and Jenny" features a pretty, idyllic wandering flute piece; "Waltz in the Street" has a delicately optimistic piano theme which gradually builds into a gently opulent string-and-woodwind waltz melody; the titular "An Education" is a typically carefree English piece for the full orchestra that lightly threads its way through a fluttery, optimistic main theme that is quite lovely; "Letters" is more downbeat, with a morose, occasionally quite stark piano and cello combo that adds a touch of pathos to Jenny's troubled relationships; "Jenny's Theme" itself is more innocent, and the central piano melody has a touch of Forrest Gump about it.

Also included on the album are a couple of period-style original songs, including the seductive, jazzy "You've Got Me Wrapped Around Your Little Finger" performed by English blues singer Beth Rowley, and the smoky "Smoke Without Fire" by soulful Welsh vocalist Duffy. There are also several other cuts from the period itself, by artists as varied as Mel Tormé, Ray Charles, Brenda Lee and Billy Fury, as well as a couple of instrumentals by Percy Faith and Vince Guaraldi. It's all very light and undemanding, richly rooted in the period in which the film is set, but a pleasant enough diversion, especially for fans of the critically acclaimed movie.

An overall great Soundtrack with a variety of eclectic Artists...from 60's to French to easy listening. However it can wear thin and grow old pretty quickly.

i wasn't going to buy the soundtrack for this film. i figured that the film was more than enough when i purchased it last summer, watched it and enjoyed it immensely.

then one morning, i was on break from teaching and i came in and turned the film on as it was playing on cable. and i heard, really heard, beth rowley singing 'you've got me wrapped around your little finger'. and that was it. i ran back to work, brought the soundtrack, downloaded it and began to make up a combination to the song.

and it turned out to be one of the most enjoyable dance combinations for me to teach and the students to dance! now not only do i have the double-dip on a lovely film and its lovely soundtrack, i have music i have either wanted or needed for some reason. like mel torme's sassy 'comin home baby', the best combination of blues and bossa nova ever recorded, 'theme from a summer place', which just says 1950s romance, juliette greco and some of the instrumental music from the film, which draws from maurice ravel. if the ravel used in the film were on the soundtrack, it would be a lock!

After watching the film, I had to buy the soundtrack. Excellent soundtrack, very much captures the moment of the early 60s in London.