Happy Birthday Miss Mulligan

Images Found off Google Images

I have to thank the bloggers at Nylon for reminding me of this momentous day in which I can wish the lovely actress all the best wishes as well as do some sort of film inspiration fashion post. I don't know anyone who hasn't watched An Education yet so if you are in the small minority who hasn't, please do yourself a favour and watch the damn thing. It's very nicely paced with gorgeous cinematography and wonderful clothing and acting to boot.

My memory of the film is foggy at best since I watched it when it first came out (around 2009) but I don't remember anything negative of the film. I guess if I had to pick apart and choose an area of the film that I didn't like it would have to be the very predictable conflict (hereby written in white as to not spoil it for people who haven't watched it yet though because it's super predictable I'm pretty sure one can guess accurately on their own accord - the man is discovered to have a family and wife as the conflict of the film.) I can even overlook that however because the film is so beautifully executed that you don't notice the minor glitches and I have to admit that is the only plausible plot point to make Jenny (Carey Mulligan's character) fully realize her true potential and direction in life. If I was Jenny in the film, I would be greatly perturbed at being seduced by a much older man,  no matter how suave and charming, man from the curbside. That's why I loved that Peter Sarsgaard's character, David Goldman who would become her lover, does not feel overtly creepy (pedo anyone?) and their exchanges throughout were realistic and rather quite sweet until her discovery of his domestic status. Sarsgaard plays David quite well to that affect and becomes almost, the perfect lover and the answer to her general ennui. What garnered Carey Mulligan's Oscar nomination was her perfect portrayal of teenage angst, coupled with the palpable ennui, boredom and the intense need to show off and "be different" from her peers. It is seriously pitch perfect because I truly identified with her when I watched it (I was also sixteen at the time too to boot).

The cherry on top of it all has to be of course the impeccable attention to the detail of the time period (à la Mad Men) and the wonderful clothes. Carey Mulligan looks like the perfect Audrey Hepburn incarnation in her cute hairdo and simple chic dresses with adorable little accessories. Her relatively shabbier outfits such her school uniform looks equally pitch perfect as well. All the resulting ensembles give off an air of timeless classical elegance that is sure to endure time and inspire all future audiences. I have to say what is equally compelling as her clothes is her well coiffed hair - I loved her bangs so much once I went to the hair salon with photos of her hair in multiple angles however they have since grown out. I don't know exactly why I love them so much, perhaps it is the springy youthfulness that it exudes which accentuates her romantic sweet appearance.




I can go on and on gushing over how amazing everything looks, however that would take forever, so I would be focusing on only Jenny and one of David's friends, Helen, who is played by the radiant Rosamund Pike. Helen is a lot more mature than the young Jenny and her luxurious style reflects that. She appears rather superficial and shallow which is shown through the excess overload of accessories. She is the one that teaches Jenny about the ways of men, kind of her mentor as the  unsophisticated teen meanders her way into an alien worldly society. Though her style can appear to be almost too much at times, in stark comparison to the simple Jenny, shes serves as a foil to the innocent and naïve teen and Pike seems to carry off the look with aplomb.




Unfortunately I just double checked Carey Mulligan's birthday and it appears to be May 28th instead of May 27th - Nylon seems to have jumped the gun a little early! Nevertheless it never hurts to be a few hours early as I have other things planned for tomorrow's post so it's safe to say to Miss Mulligan: Happy 26th Birthday! You're one super pretty, talented actress and I look forward to all your future films because in my books, you can't do any wrong.

P.S. Clothes on Film did what I failed to do and better many times over in their fashion in film review of Norwegian Wood.