Well, clearly this film isn't for everyone. Judging by the other reviews, I can say that most people mistook this for a simple "romance flick" and didn't see the point in it at all. But even if you miss the point, it still remains an aesthetic masterpiece. You can feel genuine 60s atmosphere all around, the characters have quite diverse and interesting personalities and are yet well defined, the lines are intelligent and yet often exhilaratingly funny. And the cast was just amazing. I was intrigued by an arcane Peter Sarsgaard, carried away by the effectual mimic of Carey Mulligan, I was amused and felt yet identified with Alfred Molina's funny inhibitions, and I literally melted away from Rosamund Pike's sweetly silliness.
I have to admit, that after watching it the first time, I didn't understand the moral of the whole story. The fact, that David was married, seemed to me as an unfortunate circumstance that shouldn't have kept the girl from doing what she enjoys and living her dream. When she was accepted at Oxford, her problem still hadn't been solved. She would have be doing what she declared to be boring. Once again her life would have lacked excitement and pleasure.
But... You have to remember what gave her that excitement in the first place. Everything David possessed, whether material or non-material, he acquired dishonestly. And as easily something is acquired or achieved, as easily it can be taken away. That applies to both his wealth and his personal life. In his professional life, he chose the easy path by stealing, and in his personal life he made it easy for himself by lying. When Jenny found out about him being married, the whole dream just vanished into thin air. Now let's just imagine for a second that the police found out about David's criminal activities... He would have been left with nothing. Just like what happened to their relationship. Easy come, easy go.
When Jenny said: "The life I want, there's no shortcut", she understood that if you want to possess something permanently, there is no other way, than to earn it with your own sweat.
I have to admit, that after watching it the first time, I didn't understand the moral of the whole story. The fact, that David was married, seemed to me as an unfortunate circumstance that shouldn't have kept the girl from doing what she enjoys and living her dream. When she was accepted at Oxford, her problem still hadn't been solved. She would have be doing what she declared to be boring. Once again her life would have lacked excitement and pleasure.
But... You have to remember what gave her that excitement in the first place. Everything David possessed, whether material or non-material, he acquired dishonestly. And as easily something is acquired or achieved, as easily it can be taken away. That applies to both his wealth and his personal life. In his professional life, he chose the easy path by stealing, and in his personal life he made it easy for himself by lying. When Jenny found out about him being married, the whole dream just vanished into thin air. Now let's just imagine for a second that the police found out about David's criminal activities... He would have been left with nothing. Just like what happened to their relationship. Easy come, easy go.
When Jenny said: "The life I want, there's no shortcut", she understood that if you want to possess something permanently, there is no other way, than to earn it with your own sweat.