The Graduate

1967.

#7 / #17

Winner of 1 Academy Award.

Newly graduated Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) doesn't know what to do with himself, so he begins an affair with Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), an old friend of his parents. All is well until he falls in love with her daughter, Elaine (Katharine Ross).

Sarah: This film, like CASABLANCA, gets better with each viewing. The great thing about the film is its mixture of subtle and direct. So much of the jokes and drama are understated, yet Mike Nichols's direction is bold. Mrs. Robinson may be playing coy, but the infamous camera shot between the legs says it all.

I love the transition from comedy to drama in this movie. It is so seamless you won't know when it happened. Dustin Hoffman is the perfect anti-hero. He is so awkward, yet lovable. (I can't believe they originally wanted Robert Redford for the part.) And let's not overlook the sweet Simon & Garfunkel soundtrack. As a recent graduate myself, I appreciate Ben's angst and confusion.

Eddie: I loved this movie immediately. I love anything that Nichols directs, and this is easily his best work. In THE GRADUATE, Nichols is directing top-notch actors, and the subtle movement of the scenes, the beats between breaths, put this movie in a class of its own. Hoffman, in particular, nails this movie down like an expert craftsman, using innocence, earnestness, and torpor to melt any audience.

The unsung hero of this film, though, is Robert Surtees - the director of photography. Sarah remarked on the famous through-the-leg shot, but there are easily a hundred shots like it throughout the film: Ben diving into the pool and landing in Mrs. Robinson's bed, the long lenses on Ben's first date with Elaine and on his epic run to her wedding, and the Sergio Leone-style close-ups when Ben interrupts the nuptials. Ahhh, I need to go see this movie again right now.

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