Movie Review: The Graduate (1967)

In The Graduate, we are introduced to a character (named Ben) who is played by Dustin Hoffman. His character is what I think of when I think about 1960s cinema. The Graduate revolves around Hoffman as he is slowly seduced by a friend of his parents (Anne Bancroft). I have to say, this movie shows the act of seduction as perfectly as The Godfather portrayed the life of a hit-man. Dustin Hoffman's character then falls in love with Anne's (Mrs. Robinson's) daughter played by Katharine Ross. Since this is a great (really perfect) film, I am only going to focus on three particularly good areas where this film excels. The first thing that I love about this movie, is the movie's soundtrack. The soundtrack is composed almost entirely of Simon and Garfunkel songs. Every song works great with the movie. When Ben is riding on that slide thing in the airport (IDK what to call it), Sound of Silence is playing. That song perfectly captures what Hoffman's role is portraying. He feels sad, confused, lost. Which that song perfectly illustrates. The second thing that is really cool about this movie is what the camera does. The scene where Dustin Hoffman is under the water and his father (Willem Daniels) keeps pushing him back under the water. It makes you feel so clausterphobic and like your suffocating. Even though it's only on screen, which is cool. The last thing, the thing I think that works best, is pacing. This movie is pretty fast paced, but it's not so quick that it detracts from the film. It's scenes never get boring. It has a way of always hooking your attention into the film. Overall, The Graduate is perfectly paced, excellent soundtrack, superb acting. Making The Graduate a classic. Three stars.