cuit? Do you have that term over here?). But the only scandal here is that An Education's low-key air might deny Scherfig and Carey Mulligan the plaudits they richly deserve. The latter is really quite astonishing, and while some have got snagged on the idea of her as this year's Audrey Hepburn, what actually staggers is her ability to transform from girl to woman and back again, all in the one scene. She's ably supported by a very funny Rosamund Pike, an appropriately spivvy Dominic Cooper and the ever reliable Peter Sarsgaard, who does a pretty good job of nailing an English accent - it's just from time to time that he sounds like Jemaine when he's doing his David Bowie impression on 'Flight Of The Conchords'.

As for Scherfig, she too performs an impressive balancing act, depicting early 1960s England as soul-crushingly austere (and frighteningly intolerant) while also capturing some of the delights of the time. Walthamstow dog track and Bloomsbury's Old Village Garage have both since been visited by the wrecking ball but thanks to Scherfig, their charm is preserved forever on film. The director also achieves the incredible feat of making Olivia Williams - as Jenny's mousy teacher - seem both impossibly plain and incredibly attractive.

Complaints? Well, while Hornby's screenplay often sings, he doesn't bring proceedings to a satisfactory end. And it's hard to argue that the film won't look every bit as good when it plays one evening, presumably the Christmas after next, on BBC1. But perhaps a movie being uncinematic isn't quite the criticism it once was. In an age where television often outstrips its big brother, the fact An Education will be a highlight of future festive schedules is just something else to recommend this great British film.