I’m constantly being bombarded by people telling him “you haven’t seen ____? You gotta check it out.” Or hearing critics rave “this movie is a classic, a must see.” So I decided that from now on every time he actually watches one of these flicks, I’ll write my take on whether the film will live up to the hype or fall short.
So, what’s the deal with The Graduate?
The Graduate is a very strange movie. It was much stranger than the movie I expected it to be. The film has a very dry humor style and a certain level of absurdity. Oddly, this absurdity almost helped the movie make more sense. The stuff that was going on in the plot was sometimes ridiculous. This didn’t distract from the film, but there were times when characters would react to things in ways that seemed unrealistic. There was a few times when I was surprised by what I was seeing on the screen. But, the absurd tone of the movie almost made these moments more enjoyable.
Perhaps the best part of the film, technically speaking, was the camera work. The tactics they used were noticeably well done. Every other scene seemed to have a shot that was very thought out and interesting to watch. It was something you couldn’t help but appreciate about the film.
Another great part of The Graduate was the music. It was primarily Simon & Garfunkel songs, including some new songs that Paul Simon wrote for the film. The music easily fit with the film because of the 60’s feeling both the film and the songs have. The music complemented the film by playing on opposites. While Dustin Hoffman’s character is going through some tough decisions and scrambling to get things in order, “Scarborough Fair” will be playing over the scene. It creates a nice effect that really drew me into those parts of the movie.
Dustin Hoffman was the only actor I was aware I was familiar with going into The Graduate. Halfway through, I realized that the actor who played Hoffman’s father was the same actor that played Mr. Feeny on Boy Meets World. Dustin Hoffman had a fantastic role. His character was very neurotic and a little bit of a crazy person, but overall pretty charming. Most of the movie I felt like I wanted to look away at all of the awkward things he would do and the situations he put himself in. It was similar to “Michael Scott from The Office“-level awkwardness.
After seeing The Graduate, I’m honestly surprised it’s regarded as the classic that it is. I definitely enjoyed the film, but this almost seems like an obscure movie that would’ve ended up being more of a cult classic. I’m glad it wasn’t though, because The Graduate deserves to be highly regarded.