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Learning to Drive

Play trailer Poster for Learning to Drive R 2015 1h 30m Comedy Drama Romance Play Trailer Watchlist
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65% Tomatometer 97 Reviews 59% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
A literary agent (Patricia Clarkson) whose husband left her and a Sikh driving instructor (Ben Kingsley) on the verge of an arranged marriage find that each has something to learn from the other about starting life anew.
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Learning to Drive

Learning to Drive

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Critics Consensus

The story's a bit predictable, but Learning to Drive is elevated by typically strong work from stars Patricia Clarkson and Ben Kingsley.

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Critics Reviews

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Nigel Andrews Financial Times Dec 27, 2016
3/5
Clarkson -- wonderful -- remains one of the least sung and most skilled of America's thinking screen divas. Go to Full Review Wendy Ide Observer (UK) Jun 12, 2016
3/5
Clarkson, in particular, is spot-on; her character unfolds gradually into the serenity that comes with hard-earned self-sufficiency. And the gentle, low-key humour belies some spiky observations about multicultural America. Go to Full Review Geoffrey Macnab Independent (UK) Jun 9, 2016
3/5
This is a low key but witty and often affecting film with excellent performances from Clarkson and Kingsley. Go to Full Review Hosea Rupprecht Pauline Media Studies Sep 13, 2021
I believe Learning to Drive, for a thoughtful adult audience, could be a lead-in to a wonderful conversation about attitudes toward life, especially in the face of loss. Go to Full Review Richard Crouse Richard Crouse Feb 3, 2021
3.5/5
A touching movie that isn't so much about the destination - frankly that part is a mild let down - but about the journey and the words. The pleasure of the film is taking the trip and listening in to these two professionals deliver them. Go to Full Review Allen Almachar The MacGuffin Jul 14, 2020
B-
If you're interested in something that goes down smoothly and doesn't try to challenge you in any way, you might find this bit of escapism worth your while. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Eric W @RT44269564 Sep 5, 2026 Patricia Clarkson and Ben Kingsley were wonderful. And I appreciated the deep efforts to be authentic about the Sikh community, A community I know well as I've been in that Gurdwara they showed. Was a little disappointed they weren't any Sikh actors, but I understood the draw of Kingsley. Kingsley as Darwan was almost a guru. Sharing deep advice about driving, which was also about life. This is when I will recommend to friends. See more Lee B @Elenaferrante Jul 4, 2026 Perfect slice of life. Patricia Clarkson is the best actress. I love her. Everyone is good. Interesting merging of cultures. A movie about love and kindness See more Kathryn A @RT06644350 May 5, 2023 Really expected to enjoy this, but I just couldn't get past Kingsley's awkwardness as a Sikh. Sweet story and always like Patricia Clarkson, but this was a "whoops" in Kingsley's otherwise admirable career. In spite of his heritage and general acting skills, his body language, gestures and even accent were just off. It screamed "I'm pretending to be Sikh and trying hard to get it right" in a manner I found so distracting that the film became annoying. See more Jerod S @jeroduptown Jun 11, 2022 Oddly mundane and intriguing at the same time. Patricia Clarkson gets left by her husband later in life and finds herself driving with Ben Kingsley in order to get visit her daughter. Small things point to larger rebirth. See more Oct 19, 2020 A little too slow and not as sweet as I thought it may be . I did feel bad for the wife at first though. I also didn’t feel the chemistry between the two leads in a sexual dating type manner 2.2 See more Oct 14, 2019 Learning to Drive has good performances and there but the movie falls a little short. The movie is not really that engaging and the ending really doesn’t satisfy the viewer. It’s a nice little flick and the script and writing is well done but I can’t help hoping for a little bit more in this movie. See more Read all reviews
Learning to Drive

My Rating

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Cast & Crew

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Isabel Coixet

Director

Patricia Clarkson

Wendy

Ben Kingsley

Darwan

Grace Gummer

Tasha

Jake Weber

Ted

Sarita Choudhury

Jasleen

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Learning to Drive

Learning to Drive (2014) Learning to Drive (2014) Learning to Drive (2014) Ben Kingsley as Darwan and Patricia Clarkson as Wendy in "Learning to Drive." View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis A literary agent (Patricia Clarkson) whose husband left her and a Sikh driving instructor (Ben Kingsley) on the verge of an arranged marriage find that each has something to learn from the other about starting life anew.
Director
Isabel Coixet
Producer
Dana Friedman, Daniel Hammond
Screenwriter
Sarah Kernochan
Distributor
Broad Green Pictures
Production Co
Broad Green Pictures
Rating
R (Sexual Content|Language)
Genre
Comedy, Drama, Romance
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 21, 2015, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 10, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$3.4M
Runtime
1h 30m
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