User Reviews

Driving Lessons From the writer of the critically acclaimed films, Mrs. Brown and Charlotte Gray, Jeremy Brock brings a touching heartfelt dramedy starring Academy Award Nominees Julie Walters and Laura Linney and from the Harry Potter series, Rupert Grint. The beautiful portrait tells the story of Ben Marshall, (Rupert Grint) a seventeen year old boy being held captive in the heart of his religiously neurotic mother Laura (Laura Linney). After his school year ends he decides to take a job with a clever, free-spirited, and "heavy on the bottle" retired actress, Evie Walton (Julie Walters). The pair embarks upon wonderful adventures from camping to walks around the block to the simple conversations about life. Challenging the domineering mother, as well as each other along the way, the two develop a beautiful bond that revolutionizes both their lives.

The comedic elements are flawless and precise especially coming from the British veteran, Julie Walters. Brock uses his unique style to create an infamous and loving nature that first time directors could only dream. Directing comes naturally to Brock as he builds up stunning imagery that breaks the surfaces and plunges the viewer down into an overabundance of adoration and creation. Even the subtle score by unknown composers Clive Carroll and John Renbourn accentuate the tone and manner Brock had no trouble in generating.

Laura Linney is always making her mark in films as she does as "Laura." The bossy and overbearing mother is at times unbearable and with Linney at the helm of it we are engulfed into that persona. The complexity of her character couldn't have been more flawlessly portrayed by anyone else. Rupert Grint breaks away from "Ron Weasley" and tries on someone new. His performance is more responsive than loquacious but Grint gives us someone brand new to a child performance and the viewer gets to enjoy it. But the standout is coming from Oscar nominated actress Julie Walters who gives "Evie" a life of her own. Despite the role being clearly a leading one, Walters fairs better in the supporting category where I believe she can simply take home the prize. "Evie" is a mix of "Clementine Kruczynski" and "Mrs. Laura Henderson" with her free spirit and lovable persona. Hopefully her role will not go unnoticed this awards season.

Driving Lessons isn't an "out of this world" experience but a fine, enjoyable one that any viewer could just kick back and learn a little something about life, love, and friendship coming in the forms of the most beautiful colors and sizes.

Grade: ***/****

"Driving Lessons" sees two middle class quintessential British families meet head on, when Grint's character comes into contact with Evee, (Walters), a slightly deranged out-of-touch actress with an ego. Grint betrays his overpowering, and over-Christian mother, (Linney), and goes off travelling with Evee to Scotland, to accompany her on a trip to participate in a Poetry reading, something she claims could be her last, due to an illness.

Grint's portrayal of a caged youngster, brainwashed by an overbearing, and even hypocritical mother, is the masterpiece of this film. His portrayal of a downtrodden teen in search of his true morals, and happiness, is captivating to watch unfold throughout. The film is sharply shot, and well paced, with very few moments leaving you tired, an achievement, particularly considering the nature of the plot. Walters really grabs hold of her character with both hands, and successfully brings the audience to her side of things, emphasising Linney's ironic immorality throughout. Her role in "Driving Lessons" is enjoyable and memorable in every sense.

The plot develops nicely, leaving the audience cheering on Grint as he chases back to Evee's place during his lunch break during his stint at a local bookshop to apologise for his wrongdoings. The values in the piece are continued and brought out thoroughly up until the final drag, in a very consistent way. The overbearing, (and relieving), main idea being that religion doesn't lead to happiness, and certainly doesn't lead to morality.

The audience are left sympathising with the radical but lovable Evee, with her and Grint making an irresistible partnership on the big screen, transferred directly from their debut in the "Harry Potter" series. Charismatic and beautiful acting together with a tight and fact paced script make this a must-see this Christmas.

Growing up is maybe a bit like learning to drive: lots of things you're not meant to do - at least when those in authority are watching. Staying on the straight and narrow can be difficult, especially if your teachers are awful.

Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley from the Harry Potter series) has had the misfortune to be born into a family with a preacher as a dad and a self-righteously over-bearing mother (Laura Linney). He breaks out of his imposed cocoon with the help of a retired actress (Julie Waters) and achieves his rite of passage. Driving Lessons is highly polished mainstream comedy that will keep you snickering under your breath all the way through your bible class. A large amount of f-words (and a UK 15 certificate) sadly prevent any 14yr-olds that haven't learnt to bluff effectively from seeing it. . . . oh, and there's a nice bit of sex, courtesy a good Scottish lass.

Ben answers an advert for a young man to help a retired actress in the house and garden. The eccentric Evie (Julie Walters) has soon whisked him off camping, and then taken him to Scotland where he Become A Man. He has to get rid of what Evie describes as the 'social autism' inculcated by his religious upbringing. His mum has been determinedly teaching Ben to drive (he fails his test) and things are not good in the parental marriage (but they are God's ambassadors and must show the world a smiling face). Ben learns that, "When the sh*t hits the fan, get a tent," although the road is long and sometimes hard. He also learns, through the power of impromptu drama and hard choices of conscience, that there is more to being a man than following the rules.

The road to and from Scotland is apparently a single track road that passes through such unlikely places Holyrood Park (which also just happens to have one of the best views of the city). But hey! The boy could have got lost! The whole movie has such lovable pacing and unpretentious detail that it is easy to forgive such quirks. The glimpse of the Edinburgh Festival, which is the biggest arts festival in the world, is achieved with remarkable panache. Evie and Ben arrive at the Caledonian Hotel and the Book Festival contact soon has him off to a nightclub and then her bed in the true spirit of Scottish hospitality. The soundtrack concocts a heady blend of Scottish folk, Salsa Celtica, Richard Thompson, Nick Drake and Chopin's First Nocturne in B flat Minor. Loosely based on the director's own experiences growing up as a vicar's son and working for Dame Peggy Ashcroft, his portrait of middle class London suburbia hits all the right notes: perfectly correct on the outside, and full of abnormally screwed up people behind the net curtains. He pokes fun at religion without ever causing offence and is supported by superb actors and a talented crew.

This is such a good movie that it is hard to say anything bad about it. Sadly the only flaw lies in the undeveloped substance of its central theme, meaning that Driving Lessons will be enjoyed to the hilt today, but too easily forgotten when its ideas are already second nature.

Driving Lessons is a wonderfully light-hearted yet touching comedy. It centres around the bizarre and unexpected friendship that develops between a shy and mild teenage boy, Ben (Grint) and eccentric retired actress Eve (Walters). Ben is trapped in a mundane and unhappy life that is still being controlled by his overly protective Christian mother. Eve is an old woman who still clings on to her glory days as a well known actress, and refuses to be the sweet older lady that society expects her to be. The only similarity that connects these two characters is their loneliness, and when Eve employs Ben to do odd jobs around her house, a very unlikely friendship forms. What is great about the storyline is that it has a clear message; conforming to other people's ideas of how to live your life, be it through religion, your relationship with family, or who your friends are, doesn't guarantee happiness - it doesn't matter whether your life is deemed normal, if it makes you happy then you should do it. Who doesn't love a movie with good morals? What makes this film different and, for me, quite fantastic, is how rather than being a couple of small, bland characters in a big action packed plot, it is two well developed, 3 dimensional characters in a simple yet realistic story. While some may find the plot to be boring, I think there is a well established balance between the simplicity of the storyline and the depth and intricacies of the characters. All in all a great movie, I would recommend to anybody.

Driving Lessons starring Rupert Grint and Julie Walters was an extraordinary and inspirational movie about the coming of age of a very shy and timid boy named Ben. Jeremy Brock did a marvelous job in expressing the development of each character, and left viewers with a strong message about morals and lessons.

The movie starts with Ben, a 17 year old boy, who is strongly dominated by his controlling mother. He is very shy and awkward, but has a strong love for poetry. Not many people understand his personality, until he has to work for a retired actress named Evie Walton. As he spends more time with Evie, he learns to speak his mind and stand up for himself. His true character is gradually shown throughout the movie, giving it a more realistic impact. I would strongly recommend watching this movie, not only because it had some laughable and comedic scenes, but also because through Ben, we are taught the importance of being true to ourselves. Jeremy Brock did an amazing job choosing the actors to portray his characters, making the plot even more interesting. I think that Rupert Grint was the perfect choice for Ben because he was able to demonstrate that quirky and timid personality that is not so easy to portray.

Many people complain that the ending of the movie seemed rushed, however I think that was Jeremy Brock's personal intention. It showed the viewers how life can just fly by in a matter of seconds, and how our lives can change in a blink of an eye. That's certainly what happened to Ben. In a matter of minutes, he managed to turn his life around, and in a positive way. He started to speak out and make himself known in the world.

Throughout the entire movie, there were many themes and symbols added, especially in the songs and soundtrack that was chosen. A very obvious song that left a huge impact on the ending was "Auld Lang Syne" for various reasons. Because of this, the tone and whole essence of the movie left me feeling content with the ending. Lastly, I liked how Jeremy Brock titled his movie. It may not seem relevant to the movie at first, but I think Jeremy Brock intended for his viewers to make their own interpretations and meanings regarding the title.

I was persuaded to watch this film but approached it with reluctance, expecting a tedious 'rites of passage' cliché cache with obligatory feel-good ending. But it was a lot better than that.

The cast looked promising, and without exception, delivered. I've long felt that Rupert Grint, somewhat squashed by pedestrian screenplays in the Harry Potter series, had a lot more to offer than we've seen so far. Anything with Laura Linney has to be worth watching and with Nicholas Farrell there too, not to mention the incomparably hyper Julie Walters, one knew there'd be some terrific acting.

The Linney character is so unspeakably zealous, self-righteous and awful that even her husband (Farrell,) seems unable to cope with her, despite his being an Anglican priest. Ben (Rupert Grint) desperately needs friendly guidance and a more helpful introduction to adulthood than appears to be forthcoming from his nearest and dearest - but from where? From whom?

His relationship with the foul-mouthed, neurotic, failing actress, (Walters) follows predictable lines but these are carried off by a terrific chemistry, between the two actors and the story turns enough, just, to hold one's attention to the conclusion.

A hugely enjoyable film but one that with a lot more work on the script, a sharper, more deftly plotted screenplay and ruthless elimination of hackneyed ideas, could have been a truly great one.

Grint underplayed his role, particularly in the first third of the film, but to great effect.

I only heard about Driving Lessons through the ITV adverts, and to be honest, I didn't know how much I would like it. I switched on the TV last night and was totally surprised. Driving Lessons is a modest, simple film which draws you in right from the start. Rupert Grint plays the part of socially awkward teenager Ben brilliantly. He's definitely one to look out for in the future. Dame Eve Walton is played by the fabulous Julie Walters. I loved the simple plot and the way the actors portrayed their characters with great sensitivity. The highlight of the film, for me was Evie's rather colourful poem. It shows how friendships can form between the most unlikely pairs. In my opinion, watching Driving Lessons is a great way to spend 2 hours. The scenery was also striking, especially the countryside. Anyone who can call this sparkling comedy forgettable, I strongly disagree with

It is a pleasant surprise to see Rupert Grint get to grips with some proper acting. Only the most ardent Harry Potter fan would claim that he was any great shakes in the Potter franchise, so watching his affecting performance here is a relief as much as anything else.

He is the put-upon teenager who manages to break free of his stifling mother (Laura Linney) when he goes to work for a has-been actress, played to hammy perfection by Julie Walters. Like Driving Miss Daisy and Transamerica, Driving Lessons is a film about two people with differing world views thrown together in the confines of a car.

The acting is deft and the dialogue is strong, but ultimately it doesn't do anything new with the genre. While Driving Miss Daisy tackled race and Transamerica dealt with gender identity, Driving Lessons is much less ambitious. It is, at most, the reconcilement of a conservative middle class religious boy with a flamboyant middle class atheist woman. The denouement is neither as dramatic nor as poignant as we have come to expect from this type of film, but that is as much to do with writer/director Jeremy Thorpe's choice of subject matter as his handling of it.

Moreover it is not, as other reviewers have suggested, a family film, unless your family has started using the c-word (one mention, as an adjective) and the f-word (all over the place).

It is a lovely film as far as it goes, but Thorpe, in his directorial debut, never quite shakes off his L-plates.

Ben, (Rupert Grint), is a deeply unhappy adolescent, the son of his unhappily married parents. His father, (Nicholas Farrell), is a vicar and his mother, (Laura Linney), is ... well, let's just say she's a somewhat hypocritical soldier in Jesus' army. It's only when he takes a summer job as an assistant to a foul-mouthed, eccentric, once-famous and now-forgotten actress Evie Walton, (Julie Walters), that he finally finds himself in true 'Harold and Maude' fashion. Of course, Evie is deeply unhappy herself and it's only when these two sad sacks find each other that they can put their mutual misery aside and hit the road to happiness.

Of course it's corny and sentimental and very predictable but it has a hard side to it, too and Walters, who could sleep-walk her way through this sort of thing if she wanted, is excellent. It's when she puts the craziness to one side and finds the pathos in the character, (like hitting the bottle and throwing up in the sink), that she's at her best. The problem is she's the only interesting character in the film (and it's not because of the script which doesn't do anybody any favours). Grint, on the other hand, isn't just unhappy; he's a bit of a bore as well while Linney's starched bitch is completely one-dimensional. (Still, she's got the English accent off pat). The best that can be said for it is that it's mildly enjoyable - with the emphasis on the mildly.

I just saw this movie at the Tribeca Film Festival and i have to say that i thought it was amazing. The combination of humor and sincerity really made the movie worthwhile. The movie was about a seventeen year-old boy whose mother and father are very religious. The seventeen year old, Ben, decides to work for a retired actress who teaches him about girls and driving and life. It is very comical and touching. I honestly have to say that it is now one of my favorite movies. I recommend this movie to anyone and everyone. If you didn't catch one of the showings at the film festival, it's supposed to come out in theaters later in the year. Please go see it! It is a great film.

This is the stupidest movie I've seen in a very long time. All the characters, everything that happens to them, everything they do, and every word they speak is irritating, absurd and completely unbelievable.

Rupert Grint and Nicholas Farrell are the only actors who show any restraint at all - Farrell probably from a strong innate sense of proportion and Grint probably from inexperience. But both Laura Linney and Julie Walters are so hammy that they made me cringe every time they opened their mouths.

It's not their fault; it's the writer-director Jeremy Brock, whose moronic screenplay and ham-fisted direction are so annoying that I'm amazed to see that he continued to get work after making this awful movie. I haven't seen any of his other movies, and after suffering through this one I'll make sure I never do.

Driving Lessons is a typical release in the "quirky misfit finds quirky mentor" subgenre of the coming-of-age film, and after the 2000s, this particular kind of movie isn't much to look at. While this particular kind of film might seem inspirational to some, seeing these same character types interact in this manner ends up being clichéd and just plain tired. However, this film has power in its execution, and it provides a delightful atmosphere; even at its bleakest, it has hope and a wonderful lust for life, which ultimately makes this film genuinely enjoyable.

This film is about introverted Ben Marshall, who in-between learning how to drive takes up a job serving retired actress Evie Walton, who deals with her own personal demons. He struggles to stay true to his religious family while learning how to thrive with Evie's eccentric guidance. Rupert Grint and Julie Walters make this film work, and although their characters may seem archetypal, their performances hold up the rest of the film. At least for me, it was an honest delight to watch their relationship grow from the beginning to the end. Both Grint and Walters play the respective roles of Ben and Evie with so humbled and warm that it just feels good to watch these two in action. However, the rest of the films' aspects are lost in the wake of the two leads; the other characters are in my opinion somewhat underdeveloped; even though they are refreshing, we only get that in bursts and it doesn't nearly seem as natural as Grint and Walters' performance.

The film's main theme of driving your own destiny and being your own advocate are tired; although writer/director Jeremy Brock puts this point across, it's stale; the audience can understand a theme, but it takes a little more effort to make it memorable than I felt Brock gave in the final product. Fortunately, a lot of what is missing in this movie is strengthened by a truly unique script; Jeremy Brock apparently based much of it on his own experiences working for British actress Peggy Ashcroft; maybe it explains why this portion of the plot seems stronger than the other half featuring Ben's religious family, but it does allow for some good emotional grab. The soundtrack is decent, nothing to write home about or detract from, but the inclusion of a band like Salsa Celtica is unique for something so explicitly British. We do also get to see a lot of the United Kingdom's countryside, which serves for a lot of good imagery.

All in all, Driving Lessons, while not particularly groundbreaking or otherwise ingenious, is an enjoyable, pleasurable film. I do believe it could have stood more development in the sense that it could have more to say, but is a treat to watch nonetheless, and is something I think would be a good choice for a positive watch.

"Driving Lessons" is a difficult film for me to review. After all, I liked parts of it, though when seen as a whole, it left me a bit flat. Part of it might have been the way they portrayed the hyper-religious family. Part of it might have been because the film seemed quite incomplete when it came to the relationship between the two protagonists. All I know is that I neither liked nor disliked the movie.

Rupert Grint of "Harry Potter" fame stars as Ben, a very emotionally constricted teen who has an overbearing and hyper-religious mother (Laura Linney). She insists he get a summer job....and his job turns out to be for a down and out actress (Julie Walters) who is so completely unlike Ben's mother or the rest of his family.

What all this means by the end of the film, I really don't quite know. The ending was strange and felt incomplete. The acting was sometimes good (Walters was very good) but Grint went through most of the film as if he was uncomfortable in front of the camera...which we know he isn't. I assume this is the direction given to him. All I know is that the film seemed to be filled with caricatures...not real people. I liked parts but taken as a whole...it just felt like something was missing.

I'm torn on this one - while I loved Julie Walters as the aging actress looking for a substitute son, I was just as uninspired by Rupert Grint as the mopey teen turned personal assistant. Grint has two expressions: dour and more dour. Although watching them play mum and son in the HARRY POTTER films is a minor joy, there is less 'magic' when they are center stage for 100 minutes. American Laura Linney as Grint's mum is sadly out of place here among the Brits. Her role as a puritanical church drama instructor isn't very convincingly wrought or portrayed. There's steadfast work by Nicholas Farrell as Rupe's vicar dad, but it's upstaged by some odd bloke in drag that seems leftover from another film entirely. Watching the brilliant Walters is the main reason to rent DRIVING. Maybe if Grint hangs around the veteran actress long enough, he'll learn some LESSONS - in acting.

I knew that this film wasn't going to be a work of genius before watching it but I hadn't counted on it being so incredibly average. With plenty of talented performers and an interesting premise it's an incredible shame that Driving Lessons only ever hits one note.

Grint's Ben is neither funny or particularly sympathetic. The potential layers and emotional depth to this shy character are completely bypassed for repetitions of his simplicity and niceness. One of the most frustratingly unmotivated characters in recent cinema history, Ben's unconvincing drippiness is most emphasised in a four minute romance that tells us nothing about his character other than, you guessed it, he's a bit shy and nice.

Throughout we're aware of Grint's talent hiding somewhere, trying to get out but the stalled script simply won't let him. Such a shame. Walters actually has very little to do, her character equally one dimensional. Where's the wit? The aim is for an intelligent woman yet we get no sense of that and instead we just get a bit sweary and nice.

The film's biggest fault is that it feels totally under directed, no choices seem to have been made. There's no edge to dialogues, no genuine meaning or subtext resulting in a pic with all the depth of a puddle.

Why do British films keep giving us dated portrayals of, supposedly, contemporary middle England? Christian community in outer London? Hmmm.... I don't think most people here know anyone like Linney's character. Which would be fine were she not a one note monster. I want to know how Ben feels about his religious belief in the wake of her actions but I came away from the movie having learnt nothing about him.

Words fail me in the face of a film with as much potential as this being so unremittingly crap. For a teen, coming of age comedy this is a very bland, unadventurous pic. A very badly made one too. Such a shame.

Delando Johnson Mr. Faziani English 1 November 13, 2013

Driving Lessons

I honestly don't like the movie Driving Lessons. I feel that is was dry and confusing. I also feel that the movie was not well put together. In my opinion Jeremy Brock left the reader out on a limb too much. He left too much of the movie up to the viewer's interpretation and it gets confusing. The movie has a good moral value and it had a good plot it was just too much. I feel that he could have focused on one thing or explained other things more. For example, what is Mr. Finchem's condition and how he got that way. We see him gone crazy but as a viewer we can't help but wonder what his problem is and why he eventually hit Ben's mother. Even at the end we see Ben's growth but we are still left out in the dry with other characters and there are question left unanswered. For example, Ben's mother's relationship, where the characters go from there, Mr. Finchem's situation, etc.

The actors did a god job in my opinion. You could tell what type of character we were supposed to get from the actors. For example, Bens' mother, you could tell she was bad from how she spoke and her actions. I feel that Eve was a very good character also because she brought the conflict to the story and the solution. She made Ben disobey his mother but also helped him find himself. This is Ben's story and he needed Eve to grow. Jeremy Brock did a good job of intertwining the title of the movie with how the movie plays out. He named it driving lessons and he showed us how Ben's driving lessons affected the whole movie. For example, he was driving his mother to cheat on his father which caused conflict with his family. Also, he was driving Eve around and working for her which caused conflict with his mother. But ultimately the thing he was having driving lessons on was his life. Ben was learning how to be a man and control his life the way he wanted. Eve helped him grow as a person. She helped him break out of the shell he was in and helped him make decisions that were best for him. I feel that that the mother was also another good character. I feel she provided the conflict in the story with her cheating, her strictness and her being a hypocrite. Jeremy Brock did a good job of showing how bad she was and how she affected Ben's life. Ben's mother was the reason he was like a scared boy. She manipulated him and used her power as his mother to make him do things she wanted without caring if that's what he wanted to do. She didn't allow him to have fun, or be himself because she was too over protective. She also manipulated the father and how the father acted with her reflected with Ben.

I saw this tonight with moderate expectations - if Tartan Films have picked up on something and are releasing it the that's generally a good sign, however I'm not normally a fan of Julie Walters, generally disliking her comedy roles (sorry to any fans, but it's a personal thing - I just don't find her funny in comedy).

This was magnificent though - a great performance by all, but Grint and Walters are exceptional! Plenty of laughs, plenty of pathos, great timing and a wonderfully paced film - such a coming of age film wouldn't normally be something I'd expect to like so much but I can't recommend this highly enough - and watch Rupert Grint as he matures into a fine fine actor.

Bad acting. Overacting. I wish just one person in this movie behaved in a likeable, believable manner. Laura L.'s character, the mother, is absurd in her portrayal as a saintly do-gooder. Over the top acting reduces her to an annoyance and nothing more in this all too familiar storyline. It's been done before, and done worlds better than this clumsy attempt at entertainment. Equally annoying is the old woman the kid is employed by. Whatever happened to subtelty in actor's words and actions? This movie just beats you over the head with whatever point it's trying to drive home. The deer in headlights look of the main character in this movie grows weary quickly. No originality, no revelations, no nothing of interest to a viewer looking for a deep and insightful viewing experience. If you start it, good luck completing it. You won't give a rip what happens to anybody here after half an hour. It stinks......