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Movies / On DVD / The Graduate
The Graduate

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The Graduate (1967)

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Reviews Counted:44

Fresh:39

Rotten:5

Average Rating:8.1/10

Consensus: The music, the performances, the precision in capturing the post-college malaise -- The Graduate's coming-of-age story is indeed one for the ages.

Rated: PG

Runtime: 3 hrs 32 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Dec 21, 1967 Wide

Synopsis: Director Mike Nichols's THE GRADUATE is the satirical coming-of-age comedy that became an emotional touchstone for an entire generation. In the mid-1960s, Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman), a... Director Mike Nichols's THE GRADUATE is the satirical coming-of-age comedy that became an emotional touchstone for an entire generation. In the mid-1960s, Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman), a confused college graduate, is pulled in myriad directions by family, friends, and associates just days after receiving his degree. Seduced by Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), an older friend of the family, Ben carries on an affair with the married woman even as he falls for her daughter, Elaine (Katharine Ross). However, Ben and Elaine's attempts at romance are threatened by the spiteful rage of Mrs. Robinson, who proceeds to hastily arrange Elaine's marriage to someone else, leading up to one of the most memorable endings in cinema history. With its striking photography and clever editing, THE GRADUATE established Nichols as a major director. The film also made a star out of young Hoffman, who gives an understated portrayal of the perplexed Ben--the actor's first role in a Hollywood film, which he almost didn't get because he wasn't Waspy enough. Outstanding performances by the rest of the cast are highlighted by Bancroft's sexy, embittered turn as Mrs. Robinson and Ross's endearing presence as the gorgeous yet innocent Elaine. The film's impact on popular culture is immeasurable: "Plastics" will live on eternally as depressing but solid career advice, and older women will never eye younger men without fear of becoming a "Mrs. Robinson." Buck Henry (who appears briefly in the film) cowrote the influential screenplay, based on the novel by Charles Webb, and the soundtrack by Simon and Garfunkel remains a movie classic. [More]

Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katharine Ross, Murray Hamilton

Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katharine Ross, Murray Hamilton, William Daniels, Elizabeth Wilson, Brian Avery, Walter Brooke, Norman Fell, Elisabeth Fraser, Alice Ghostley, Buck Henry, Marion Lorne, Harry Holcombe, Lainie Miller, Eddra Gale, Richard Dreyfuss, Jonathan Hole

Director: Mike Nichols

Director: Mike Nichols
Producer: Lawrence Turman
Screenwriter: Calder Willingham, Buck Henry
Story: Charles Webb
Composer: Dave Grusin
Studio: Embassy Pictures

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Jan 15, 2005

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Reviews for The Graduate

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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A safe and calculated popular landmark film.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
11/10/08
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Here's to you, Mrs Robinson.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
03/03/08
Channel 4 Film
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Rather a shame it's so often mistaken for a statement about something beyond the milk-fed adolescent blues.

Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
10/18/07
Walter Chaw
Walter Chaw
Film Freak Central

Mike Nichols' seminal film at once reflected the generation gap and also widened it, giving youths a clear voice, indigenous music, villains (all adults), and a sympathtic anti-hero, played to perfection by Dustin Hoffman in a career-making turn.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment 1 Comment
09/16/07
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

I couldn't get past the fact what a tool Benjamin Braddock was.

Full Review Source: 7M Pictures | comment 1 Comment
09/09/07
Kevin Carr
Kevin Carr
7M Pictures

...plastics, an apt description for the artificial people and attitudes around him.

Full Review Source: DVDTown.com | comment Comment
07/01/07
John J. Puccio
John J. Puccio
DVDTown.com

Nichols takes an ad hoc approach to comic irony and the movie seems to have been enshrined by American audiences because each moment in isolation "works," no matter that they tend to cancel each other out.

Full Review Source: Blogcritics.org | comment 1 Comment
06/25/06
Alan Dale
Alan Dale
Blogcritics.org

The film itself is very broken-backed, partly because Anne Bancroft's performance as the mother carries so much more weight than Katharine Ross' as the daughter, partly because Nichols couldn't decide whether he was making a social satire or a farce.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment 1 Comment
06/24/06
Derek Adams
Derek Adams
Time Out

All the indie imitators that have come later still can't touch this hilarious and biting classic.

comment Comment
04/06/06
Rob Thomas
Rob Thomas
Capital Times (Madison, WI)

A rare movie that captures a societal zeitgeist with humor, drama and biting satire.

comment Comment
12/05/05
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

Here's to you Mrs Robinson....and Mike Nichols

comment Comment
07/04/05
Clint Morris
Clint Morris
Moviehole

No review available.

comment Comment
05/16/05
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

No review available.

comment Comment
02/17/05
Todd Jorgenson
Todd Jorgenson
Denton Record Chronicle (TX)

The post-college burnout feeling that continues to resonate with audiences today. A comedy of tragedy, in which a man's youthful idealism is dealt its inevitable deathblow.

Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment Comment
01/14/05
Phil Villarreal
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star

No review available.

comment Comment
04/30/04
Daniel M. Kimmel
Daniel M. Kimmel
Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Hoffman may be a trifle too old for the role, but the movie's still amazing.

comment Comment
03/26/04
Luke Y. Thompson
Luke Y. Thompson
New Times

No review available.

comment Comment
03/16/04
Rebecca Murray
Rebecca Murray
About.com

They don't make 'em much better than this (or Anne Bancroft's unforgettable Mrs. Robinson).

comment Comment
02/05/04
John Urbancich
John Urbancich
Sun Newspapers of Cleveland

It launched a type of film that is with us even today. Think not? Look at the work of David O. Russell and Wes Anderson and think again.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
11/05/03
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Visually stunning, but more superficial than you expect or remember.

comment Comment
07/31/03
Nell Minow
Nell Minow
Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Latest News for The Graduate

May 09, 2008: Best and Worst Movie Moms
From nurturing and strong to manipulative and murderous, moms do some crazy things in the interest of protecting (or betraying) their brood, and this list -- hotly contested in... More...

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Along with babes and bullets, James Bond is quite well-known for his fine taste in transportation ... and it seems he's chosen a rather unique piece of machinery for his opening... More...

August 17, 2005: Trailer Bulletin: Rumor Has It
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See All

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