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THE GRADUATE (1967) (****)

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"Mrs. Robinson, you're trying to seduce me. Aren't you?" If you haven't seen Mike Nichols' classic, you still know that line. Coming at the end of '60s, the comedic ode to disillusionment embodied the growing resentment toward the status quo. Mrs. Robinson proposition to the new college grad Benjamin Braddock is not just a proposition for sex, but also an invitation to join the hypocrisy of the American ideal.

Dustin Hoffman's Benjamin as filled with uncertainty about everything. He's done everything that his parents have ever asked on him. He excelled at school in both academics and sports. His privileged life has always been planned out for him, but he's burned out and doesn't want to play the game anymore. The real problem though is he doesn't know any of this. His parents, played by William Daniels (TV's ST. ELSEWHERE) and Elizabeth Wilson (THE BIRDS), are drowning him, so he runs to the best option he sees in front of him — sex.

Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft, THE MIRACLE WORKER) is as disillusioned as Benjamin. She too has done everything that she was supposed to do and it has sucked all the joy of living out of her. If you'd see her husband (Murray Hamilton, JAWS), they seem like the perfect successful couple, but when the secrets are pulled away, they are not happy at all. They haven't even been sleeping in the same room for years. Benjamin is a diversion from her misery.

Another thing Benjamin had to do for his parents was take out the Robinsons' daughter Elaine (Katharine Ross, BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID) when she comes home to visit from Berkley. Mrs. Robinson makes Benjamin promise he will never take her out. When Benjamin crumbles under the pressure, he takes Elaine to a strip club. When she leaves in tears, he is snapped back to reality. It's been a while since he saw a woman express any real emotion.

Hoffman, Bancroft and Ross were all nominated for Oscars. Each brings the perfect note to their roles. Hoffman is awkward in a boyish way. Watch how stiff he is around Mrs. Robinson and how loose he is around Elaine. His comedic impulse is rooted in his impulse to experiment with his acting. In the hotel scene where Benjamin and Mrs. Robinson first sleep with each other, it was Hoffman's idea to stiffly grab Bancroft's breast. Nichols laughed so hard off screen that it made Hoffman want to laugh so he turned away from the camera and went to the wall where he banged his head. When all the pieces are perfect, magic happens.

Bancroft brings sultry allure and a confident presence. She knows exactly how to manipulate this naïve young man. But throughout, she hangs depression over Mrs. Robinson. Ross makes Elaine smart and attractive. She relates to Benjamin's disillusionment and might even be attracted to his rebelliousness when she first learns that he is having an affair with an older married woman.

The Oscar nominated script from Calder Willingham and Buck Henry, based on Charles Webb's novel, is crafted precisely. The dialogue is smart as a whip with great humor coming for verbal misunderstandings. A perfect example of the artistry of the writing is the scene in the hotel room where Benjamin wants to talk with Mrs. Robinson. It reveals a lot about the characters. Benjamin is beginning to feel again and Mrs. Robinson doesn't want to. He keeps pressing and Mrs. Robinson seems to get uncomfortable and sad. She is losing control of the situation. But watch how things flip when Benjamin gets angry. The scene circles back around and by the end Benjamin is the one that doesn't want to talk.

Nichols won the film's only Oscar for his directing. He works a subtle artistic flare over the material. He uses film language to perfection. His pacing in the aforementioned hotel scene is impeccable. As Benjamin tries to talk, he turns on the lights and Mrs. Robinson keeps turning them off. Besides the metaphorical implications, it also helps build tension, helping Benjamin's blow up feel more natural. Working with the Oscar nominated cinematographer Robert Surtees, he crafts complex frames with action happening precisely in the foreground and the background. Many will point out the tight claustrophobic framing on Benjamin in the opening party scene where his parents' friends are peppering him with questions. Others the scene were Benjamin runs to the wedding and the telephoto lens makes it seem like he is running in place. But the shot that always strikes me is the scene where Ross turns away from the camera and turns back but the camera doesn't pull the focus with her. As the picture in her mind becomes clearer, so does the picture on the screen.

Countered by the soulful music of Simon and Garfunkel, the humor takes on a poignant subversiveness. Like so many romantic comedies, the film ends with the young man running to reunite with the young women, but few are filled the allegorical flare this film has. Benjamin's use of a cross is more than just irreverence. When Mrs. Robinson tells her daughter it's too late and she replies, "Not for me;" the disparities between the generation of Misters and Missuses and the generation of Benjamins and Elaines are summed up in one line.

Rick DeMott's picture

Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks