Review of The Graduate (1967) by Conner R — 12 Jun 2011

I've been incredibly harsh on The Graduate over the years and cynical about its overbearing popularity. The thing is, I wasn't alive when the movie came out and it's hard sometimes to see movies in the context of their release.

It's easy at this point in time to say that this movie is dated, but I think that was part of the idea. The Graduate is a complete time capsule movie; it was made to be revolutionary and shocking for the audience that was being exposed to it.

Now it still has great aesthetics today, but back in 1967 it must've been amazing. After seeing it multiple times now, I think I've finally managed to appreciate everything it's trying to do and what it wants to say.

Maybe I just didn't want to like it due to the fact that there are conflicting morals I have with some of the characters, but that shouldn't be a detriment to the pleasure you get from watching a movie.

The fact is, The Graduate is just about as good as you're going to get when it comes to a coming of age storyline. Everything from the performances to the direction feels incredibly natural and has enough realism in it to make anyone recognize similarities to their life (well, if you're a white suburbanite).

Dustin Hoffman really is flawless here and completely embodies his nervous and unsure character. I think Ben is a character that I familiarize with in a way that scares me. He does and says things that I probably have and feels thing I know I feel.

Anne Bancroft is obviously great here too and does an extremely convincing job as a seductress and will make anyone watching it completely vulnerable to her teasing and mind games. Someone that doesn't get much recognition for her role at all is Katherine Ross; she gives such a sympathetic performance and really makes you fall in love with her for all the right reasons.

Mike Nichols is by far the best director of relationship issues. Coming off of Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf?, it's easy to see why he knows the ins and outs of portraying a realistic and effective couple on screen.

The way he positions the characters and frames everything is just perfect. This presents the world as it was at one point and still is in a lot of ways. Not only has this been influential to film, but just in terms of storytelling and concepts of relationships and life in general.