More American Graffiti (1979)

College graduates deal with Vietnam and other issues of the late '60s.

Director:

Bill L. Norton

Writers:

Bill L. Norton, George Lucas (characters),

Stars:

Candy Clark, Bo Hopkins, Ron Howard

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Candy Clark	...	Debbie Dunham
Bo Hopkins	...	Little Joe
Ron Howard	...	Steve Bolander
Paul Le Mat	...	John Milner
Mackenzie Phillips	...	Carol / Rainbow
Charles Martin Smith	...	Terry the Toad
Cindy Williams	...	Laurie Bolander
Anna Bjorn	...	Eva
Richard Bradford	...	Major Creech
John Brent	...	Ralph
Country Joe McDonald	...	Country Joe and the Fish
Barry Melton	...	Country Joe and the Fish (as Barry 'the Fish' Melton)
Robert Hogins	...	Country Joe and the Fish
Robert Flurie	...	Country Joe and the Fish
Peter Albin	...	Country Joe and the Fish

Storyline

College graduates deal with Vietnam and other issues of the late '60s.

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Plot Keywords:

vietnam | wedding ring | arrest | national guard | police brutality | 

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Taglines:

More laughs. More music.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | War

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Icelandic

Release Date:

3 August 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Purple Haze

Filming Locations:

Baylands Raceway Park - 44333 Christy Lane, Fremont, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$8,100,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lucasfilm, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

George Lucas came up with the idea of shooting each of the four story lines in a different aspect ratio. Milner's Drag racing was in the 1950's exploitation style using a wide angle, stationary camera. The Vietnam sequences were shot on 16-milimeter film, like the TV reports of the time. Laurie and Steve's campus riot resembled a Hollywood version of student rebellions like The Strawberry Statement or Getting Straight. Debbie's trip were in multiple-image split-screen, inspired by Woodstock.

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Goofs

When Ole and Eva are talking amongst them, they are not talking Norwegian as we are told they are, but in fact Danish.

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Quotes

Rob: Debbie, you wanna stay away form weed. You know it's gonna lead you into cigarettes.

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Connections

References Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)

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Soundtracks

"You Were on My Mind"
Performed by The We Five
Courtesy of A&M Records, Inc.

User Reviews

Their futures were foretold at the conclusion of the original...

So why did we need "More"? It must've been a corporate decision--with financial gain the bottom line. If so, that plan didn't quite work, as "More American Graffiti" failed to catch on with its target audience, mostly due to the fact it reflects not the 1960s but TV sitcoms derived from '60s nostalgia. Ron Howard and Cindy Williams' story plays like a "Happy Days" rerun with bad language, however Charles Martin Smith's Vietnam episode is vividly captured--and the idea of him trying to blow off his own arm in order to get back home says more about the war than "The Deer Hunter" did in three hours. Paul LeMat has some good scenes flirting with a pretty Swede, while Candy Clark kicks around as a kooky hippie. The film, produced by George Lucas, is full of colorful distractions: multi-image cinematography, constant period music on the soundtrack, and lots of overacting. Unfortunately, nothing can distract from the laziness of the writing, nor from the film's somewhat tiring concept (which feels awfully gimmicky). The episodes aren't shaped with much thoughtfulness, and the film is insensitive and preconceived. ** from ****