I thought I'd watch a bit of this out of curiosity to see Rupert Grint in something other than a Harry Potter movie. It turned out to be like a book you couldn't quite put down, although that's not saying this is a "great" movie. But much to its credit, it is somewhat unique.Grint here plays a 17 year old too much under his mother's overly-religious thumb...despite her own failings that make her anything but an ideal Christian. Grint gets a job as a companion to an older lady who was once an actress. The old lady brings Grint into conflict with his mother, and teaches him about the value of friendship...even friendships that are offbeat.It's not all good. The whole camping things escapes me as being illogical. And, I think the old actress role was made a bit too eccentric. It needed eccentricity, but it was exaggerated. And, I was disappointed with the ending. It couldn't quite be a happy ending, but I thought it would have been appropriate for the young man and his father to befriend the old actress.The basic theme of the movie...occasionally lost...is that there is a difference between what religion is perceived to be and what it should be. At least that's how I see it. Along with the theme of becoming a sensitive adult. That's all good.And there's some good acting here. I think Grint is an underrated young actor at an awkward time in his career. I think his potential is actually greater than that of Daniel Radcliffe. He was good here, although I am wondering if he is actually somewhat physically awkward or if that was part of the character.As mentioned, Julie Walter's character's eccentricities are overplayed, although I have a feeling that was the fault of the director more than of the actress.Laura Linney, a fine actress, is the rather unlikable mother here. Not an enviable role (she shows just how screwed up a parent can be), but a juicy role.Nicholas Farrell as the father doesn't have a lot to do here, although he has one really good scene toward the very end of the film.To like this film I think you need to be able to enjoy an off-beat movie. I probably wouldn't want to watch it a second time, but I did enjoy watching it once.

I really enjoyed this film. It's simple, and just natural. It reminds me a lot of the American film called Saved. Loved that movie too especially when I was in High School. Rupert Grint and Julie Walters are phenomenal. Rupert is a natural at this. Gah I love him! So talented. He shines brighter on his own aside from the HP films. I love seeing him in these different roles,and so far, the ones I've seen him in, he has done exceptionally well. I'll be looking out for more of what Rupert has to offer. Julie Walters is best old person I'd love to have as a BFF. She'd probably yank my head for calling her "old" haha.This film made me want to move to Britain :)

The 2006 film "Driving Lessons", by Jeremy Brock was a crazy, and entertaining movie. The main character was Ben. Ben was a very weird person, and he was his mom's puppet. The plot in the film was for Ben to learn how to drive so that he could get his driver's license. Bens mother Sarah was always in Bens ear, and always telling him that god would take care of everything, but in reality his mother was actually crazy. "My mother's gonna kill me. You don't understand". This shows that Sarah basically controlled her son's life. Sarah couldn't teach Ben how to drive because she was too irritating for Ben. Ben met his future best friend; Dame Evie Walton. Evie was a washed up actor that was always drunk. Ben would go over her house to help her out with her garden when she needed help. Sarah was jealous of Evie because she was getting all of Ben's attention. Evie told Ben that she was dying to give Ben a sign saying that he should live life to the fullest, and not be a puppet. Ben's mother and father were in the middle of a divorce, and that's another reason that his mom wanted all of Ben's attention. She felt like she was losing her son to Evie, and she started to keep Ben away from Evie. Without Ben, Evie felt more alone than ever because Ben was her only real friend. She turned backed to getting drunk, and making a fool of herself because no one was there to guide her on the right path. It was a key. "I swallowed it. Frankly, you should be flattered! Now... I insist you have a drink". The film didn't get interesting until the end. Toward the end, Ben started to grow up, and started to become his own person. Ben left an important event to go see Evie because he knew that he could always be his self around Evie. He knew that Evie was more important than any dumb old play. Once Sarah realized what was going on, she was furious. She attempted to try to get Ben back, but Mr. Finchum ended up hitting her with the car out of nowhere. This was a part in the movie that I didn't really understand. Once Sarah was injured, she really wanted Ben's attention, and Ben had no choice but to give it to her. Ben let Sarah know that he was going to be his own man, and that he learned how to drive with Evie. Auld Lang Syne was the song at the end of the movie. Auld Lang Syne was a song meaning a new beginning. The song would be played on new years. Ben grew courage, and even told the girl of his dreams to buzz off. Ben felt rejuvenated, and he felt like a brand new person. Ben felt like there was a new beginning. Ben never got his driver's license. This was the main point of the movie, and it made no sense why they didn't stay on topic. mail.plymouthed.org

The movie Driving Lessons by Jeremy Brock left me hanging by a string. Although the movie had a good moral I did not care for it. The movie was filled with various subplots which deluded you from the main focus. The movie takes us on a voyage throughout a young boy's life to manhood. Ben Marshall played by Rupert Grin was a timid awkward teenager trying to pass his driving test. He went through various adventures to along the way. Throughout his journey he met some influential people, one in particular Evie Walton a sassy retired actress with an immense love for Shakespeare. The movie's plot was overpowered by several other subplots that took place throughout the movie. Because of this it was somewhat hard to grasp the main concept of the movie. These subplots were conflicting throughout the movie leading to numerous dead ends. So many other story lines were going on throughout the movie it made it extremely busy and confusing. As the movie progresses the true plot did unveil. This movie lacked element. It failed to give us background or detailed information on characters such as Byrony and Mr. Finch. For instance Byrony was a quick fling Ben had, they hit it off for a couple of scenes then she disappeared and there was no information stating why they stopped communicating. In the movie we are told that Mr. Finch is ill old man that lives with the Marshall's because he killed his wife, but we are left to wonder why he did so or how he became sick. The choppiness of the movie was also displeasing. The scenes did not flow properly and that became a huge distraction for me. The randomness of this movie also was extremely annoying. For instance when Evie and Ben were on the bus Evie starts going on about how he is gay, I thought this scene was pointless. I feel as if the author wanted to waste time so he put frivolous scenes in the movie in hopes of entertaining us, but he fell short. At the end of the movie we are left to wonder if Ben really did pass his driving test. Although that question remains unanswered we do know he passed his life driving test. When driving a car you go on many roads which may lead to side streets and dead ends just like life, Ben proceeded to persevere and find his purpose. Overall I rate this 5.67 out of 10.