The Graduate

Benjamin Braddock and Mrs. Robinson

“Plastics”

            Benjamin Braddock has just graduated from a prestigious East Coast university with flying colors. Returning to his family’s home in Los Angeles, Benjamin is distraught with the direction of his future. Mike Nichol’s film The Graduate opens with a close up shot of Benjamin’s expressionless face as his plane begins its decent to Los Angeles. The first shot of Benjamin’s face gives the first clue to the contradictory desperation and apathy that is Benjamin Braddock. Nichol’s quickly takes the audience and Benjamin from the airport to his parent’s home, where they have decided to throw a party in their son’s honor. Nichol’s shoots most of the scene using jarring cuts, dizzying tracking shots, and close-ups. Benjamin is obviously uncomfortable with his parents and their friends celebrating his accomplishments. Track star, editor of the school newspaper and winner of various academic awards, Benjamin is the perfect young man. Benjamin tells his father he is “concerned about his future”, which is a line that becomes a kind of leitmotif for the Benjamin character. Benjamin is prodded, hugged, praised, and kissed by the throng of guests causing him to flee back to his bedroom. Before Benjamin can flee, he is cornered by a family friend who tells him that his future lies in plastics. This is more than the bewildered Benjamin can take and he breaks through the crowd and collapses in the solitude of his bedroom. The solitude is soon broken by the wife of his father’s business partner Mrs. Robinson who demands that Benjamin drive her home. Benjamin reluctantly agrees to drive her home and Mrs. Robinson begins to seduce him. Mrs. Robinson shifts back and forth between mother figure and temptress as she gets Benjamin in her house, to her bar, and ultimately upstairs in her daughter’s bedroom. The bewildered and fragile Benjamin is no match for her. She offers herself to Benjamin and Nichols shows her naked body in the reflection of her daughter’s portrait, foreshadowing her importance in the story. Benjamin bolts from the room to meet Mr. Robinson who has just arrived home. Terrified, Benjamin has a drink with the unwitting husband who, in one of the movie’s brilliant moments of irony, tells Benjamin to use the summer to sow his oats.

“Are you here for an affair?”

            Eventually Benjamin takes up Mrs. Robinson on her offer and they begin an affair. The scenes of Benjamin trying to procure a hotel room where the suspicious-in Benjamin’s mind-deskman asks Benjamin the classic line “Are you here for an affair?” are some of the movie’s most humorous scenes. As Benjamin gets further into his affair with Mrs. Robinson, he withdraws further from his parent’s suburban existence of cocktail parties, barbeques, and material possessions. His affair with Mrs. Robinson is the only thing that keeps him sane. Nichols shoots a long and groundbreaking montage scene that begins with Benjamin floating on an inflatable pool mattress and ending up in bed with Mrs. Robinson. Paul Simon song “The Sounds of Silence” plays continuously through this portion of the movie and serves as a motif for Benjamin’s withdrawal.

Benjamin Braddock and Elaine Robinson

Enter Elaine

            Facing pressure from his parents and Mr. Robinson and despite the wishes of Mrs. Robinson, Benjamin takes the Robinson’s daughter Elaine out on a date. Benjamin initially tries to brush off Elaine by driving fast, speaking crude, and taking her to a strip club, but finds out he really likes her. After a kiss and an apology the two enjoy each other’s company and agree to go on a date the next day, but not until after Benjamin tells Elaine of an affair he had with an older woman.

            When Benjamin arrives to pick up Elaine, he is ambushed by Mrs. Robinson, who tells Benjamin that she will reveal their affair if he takes Elaine out again. Benjamin rushes to talk to Elaine but is followed by Mrs. Robinson. When Elaine discovers that Benjamin’s affair was with her mother she orders him out of her life forever.

The Wedding

            Realizing that he is in love with Elaine, he chases her to Berkley, where she attends college. When Benjamin makes his presence known to Elaine she is not happy. Benjamin also finds out he is competing with another suitor. After Benjamin explains the affair, Elaine seems like she may come back to Benjamin and marry him. Suddenly Benjamin discovers that she has been whisked off by her parents to marry the other suitor. After a long and famous car chase Benjamin finds the church and whisks Elaine off after the ceremony. The couple escapes on a city bus. The ending scene shows the couple with bewildered and scared looks on their face, they are together but apart and their future is as uncertain as their expressions.  

 

coverBackground: Mike Nichols, who had already directed the film Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolff, directed The Graduate?  The movie was based off of a novel written by Charles Webb. It became a huge hit because it made humor of the situational irony Benjamin was faced with considering his affair with Mrs. Robinson and then falling for her daughter Elaine. The film starred Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft who were not very well known actors at the time, but that all changed after this film. We learn in the film that Benjamin is a developing character.  He is going through a rough and difficult time in his life, which is shown through his internal conflict and how he is characterized by his external action. Also, the cinematic techniques used made the film earn even more attention.   

  Film Poster

Cinematic Techniques: A technique used in the film was the telephoto lens.  When Benjamin is running to find Elaine, the audience can see how he is running at full speed to catch her.  The telephoto lens makes it seem as if he is getting nowhere and that he will not get her.  It adds suspense to the scene making the audience question if he will get there in enough time.  An editing technique used was the jump cut.  One particular scene this is noticeable is when Benjamin is jumping onto the raft in the pool and then it is cut to Benjamin landing on a bed next to Mrs. Robinson. A huge part of the Graduate was the musical score.  Simon and Garfunkel’s music was played in the film. They were popular singers at the time the movie was filmed. Two songs of theirs that were played often were “Sounds of Silence” and “Scarborough Fair.”  Theses songs acted as an interior monologue for Benjamin according to Joseph Boggs The Art of Watching Films.  Boggs also notes that in the scene where Elaine Robinson, daughter of Mrs. Robinson finds out that Benjamin has been fooling around with her mother that soft focus is used.  Boggs says, “The blurred face expresses her state of shock and confusion, and her face comes back into focus only when she fully takes in what Benjamin is trying to tell her.

 

The Graduate was a huge success.  It not only made an impact during the time it was made.  Many movies reference the Graduate even today.  In Wayne’s World 2, Wayne goes after the girl he is in love with and pounds on the glass of the church just like Benjamin did.  In American Pie and American Pie 2, Finch and Stifler’s Mom copy the relationship of Benjamin and Mrs. Robinson.  The film was so successful that it was not only recognized by the younger generation, but by film critics.  Here are some of the Awards and Nominations that the graduate received

 

 

Awards include:

Nominations include:

Awards and Nomination information taken from the Internet Movie Database http://us.imdb.com/Tawards?0061722

   

Leg Shot

Discussion Questions:

 

Here are some web pages linked to the Graduate:

The Graduate (personal website) http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/8200/graduate.html

Chicago Reader on Film  http://www.chireader.com/movies/archives/0397/03287.html

The Graduate (1967) Movie Reviews http://www.medialab.chalmers.se/guitar/graduate2.html

Internet Movie Database http://us.imdb.com/Title?0061722

Chicago Sun Times Reviews http://www.suntimes.com/ebert/ebert_reviews/1997/03/032805.html

   

This web page was created by Jessica Wessa, Meghann Miller, Adam Walbrun, Mark Liedel, and Sara More    

Submission Date: December 3, 2001