When "The Graduate" was first released in 1967 everyone went to go see it. The college crowds devoured it hungrily, as it was the first of its kind a film that proposed adults were emotional sell-outs who thrived on superficiality and materialism.
It earned Mike Nichols a Best Director Academy Award as well as solidifying itself as one of the biggest and most important films of the 1960s, a motion picture whose influence would extend effortlessly into the generations to come.
But is "The Graduate" really a great movie, or were moviegoers simply too caught up in the moment to realize what they were watching was nothing more than an exploit of the times? This is clearly an anti-bourgeois film, one with a liberal message of hippie politics; it was a drug culture movie, the defining motion picture of a generation of free love, school drop-outs and loners who sat around drinking beer all day moaning about how awful life was.
Perhaps I sound overly critical of a film whose purpose is to examine (or more appropriately define) an era? Surely it is not the fault of this movie that it is about an unlikable person? No, its fault is that it tries to sympathize with him Benjamin is a spoiled rich kid, and it's hard to feel empathetic towards him when he wallows about drinking beer poolside, staring into his aquarium and ignoring everyone around him: A self-absorbed cynical.
Yes, Benjamin (Dustin Hoffman) is going through an awkward change in his life. He's an East Coast graduate who returns home to his parents' estate in an upper-class suburb and finds it hard to adjust to life again.
The opening scenes are promising Benjamin is unable to interact with the adults, finding solace in his bedroom, where he stares at his aquarium, contemplating whatever it is gloomy college graduates contemplate.
A friend of his parents, named Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), tries to seduce Benjamin after he gives her a lift home inviting him in for a drink and then undressing in front of him, blocking his exit.
Benjamin resists at first, but the temptation is too much to bear and he begins an ill-fated sexual relationship with the older married woman driving to a nearby hotel every few nights to meet her.
Benjamin's parents don't seem to catch on at first, although his mother has suspicions that he's seeing someone. Benjamin shrugs her off and ignores his father altogether. When they set him up on a date with Mrs. Robinson's daughter (Katharine Ross), he feels extremely uncomfortable and takes her out to an unsuitable place for the evening as a way of making sure she never wants to see him again. However, much to his surprise, Benjamin finds himself falling for her anyway.
Here ends the first half of the movie the second half is more serious, moody and focused on Benjamin and his new love interest. And of course the anger of her mother, who threatens to reveal the truth to everyone if he continues to date her daughter.
"The Graduate" uses some cheap tricks to force us into seeing things Benjamin's way for example, before having sex Benjamin wants to talk like a normal person, and have a conversation with Mrs. Robinson. We're meant to stop a moment and reconsider Benjamin's morality when in fact it's just a way of Benjamin trying to make himself feel better about what he is doing; justifying the basic animal instincts by twisting them into formality. By holding a reasonable discussion, the depravity of the casual sex is lessened. It all benefits Benjamin, no one else.
Furthermore the characters have little depth. Benjamin falls in love with Mrs. Robinson's daughter, Elaine, in what seems an instant. Their abrupt decision at the end of the picture (which I won't spoil) is now laughable, because in 1967 it offered an optimistic, endless adventure for the wide-eyed teens, I suppose; but now it just leads to foreseeable misery, and comes across as juvenile and ridiculous.
The film has influenced a wide array of modern directors, most noticeably Wes Anderson, whose style of film-making is based around similar themes of contempt, quirky humor and oddball characters, typically led by a cynic. (For example, Bill Murray in "Rushmore" or "The Life Aquatic.") Its cultural impact is phenomenal, being referenced in such popular entertainment as "The Simpsons" and an endless array of movies. (Perhaps most memorable of all, the extensive spoof in "Wayne's World 2.") And whom do you know that wouldn't recognize the line, "Mrs. Robinson, I think you're trying to seduce me"? Indeed, the cultural impact of "The Graduate" is unarguable this is a milestone movie and few others have had such a diverse effect on how we live. Like "The Terminator" and "Star Wars," most people would recognize the material itself even if they haven't seen the movie. Hum the first few notes of the "Jaws" theme song and see how many people can guess what it is.
Similar is "The Graduate" in its appeal and popularity. It continues to endure, remaining a key word amongst film buffs and college crowds. But as a film it is just good, not great. It is not expertly crafted and is actually quite awkward. This is essentially a snapshot of the era and little else the characters aren't likable and we're forced into feeling false admiration for them; the direction is somewhat clumsy, the script is often unbelievable and the movie's two halves its drastic change from comedy to drama -- never really form a satisfying whole.
Like Benjamin, "The Graduate" just kind of sits there, staring at you bored, self-absorbed, and lazy. This movie has no soul, no heart and after forty years of sulking, that is what proves to be clearest of all.
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