Bonnie Parker, a bored waitress falls in love with an ex-con named Clyde Barrow and together they start a violent crime spree through the country, stealing cars and robbing banks.
Director:
Arthur Penn
Stars:
Warren Beatty,
Faye Dunaway,
Michael J. Pollard
Through the open country and desert lands, two bikers head from L.A to New Orleans, and along the way, meet a man who bridges a counter-culture gap they are unaware of.
Ted Kramer's wife leaves him, allowing for a lost bond to be rediscovered between Ted and his son, Billy. But a heated custody battle ensues over the divorced couple's son, deepening the wounds left by the separation.
Director:
Robert Benton
Stars:
Dustin Hoffman,
Meryl Streep,
Jane Alexander
"The Washington Post" reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein uncover the details of the Watergate scandal that leads to President Richard Nixon's resignation.
Director:
Alan J. Pakula
Stars:
Dustin Hoffman,
Robert Redford,
Jack Warden
Wyoming, early 1900s. Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid are the leaders of a band of outlaws. After a train robbery goes wrong they find themselves on the run with a posse hard on their heels. Their solution - escape to Bolivia.
Director:
George Roy Hill
Stars:
Paul Newman,
Robert Redford,
Katharine Ross
Ben has recently graduated from college, with his parents now expecting great things from him. At his "Homecoming" party, Mrs. Robinson, the wife of his father's business partner, has Ben drive her home, which leads to an affair between the two. The affair eventually ends, but comes back to haunt him when he finds himself falling for Elaine, Mrs. Robinson's daughter.Written by
Zac Abrams
Spoofed by multiple episodes of The Simpsons (1989). One is season two, episode nineteen, "Lisa's Substitute", with Dustin Hoffman (as "Sam Etic") playing a substitute teacher who, after she hits on him, says, "Mrs. Krabappel, you're trying to seduce me!" Another is season two, episode eleven, "One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish", which has Homer (believing he has only a few hours to live) running down a street to get home to Marge, accompanied by a guitar solo resembling the one played as Benjamin runs to the church. He then pounds on his living room window and shouts, "Marge, Marge!" Another is season five, episode twenty-one, "Lady Bouvier's Lover", which has Grandpa Simpson pounding on a church window to stop Marge's mother, Jacqueline Bouvier, from marrying Mr. Burns, repeatedly shouting "Mrs. Bouvier!" They both run out of the church and jump onto a bus. The episode's closing song parodies "The Sound of Silence". See more »
Goofs
When Ben is sitting in bed smoking a cigarette, he reaches up to the shades and when his hand shows up again in the scene, the cigarette is no longer there. In fact he simply switches it from his right to his left hand out of shot before he reaches for the blinds and you can still see the smoke coming up. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Pilot:
Ladies and gentlemen, we are about to begin our descent into Los Angeles. The sound you just heard is the landing gear locking into place. Los Angeles weather is clear; temperature is 72. We expect to make our 4 hour and 18 minute flight on schedule. We have enjoyed having you on board, and look forward to seeing you again in the near future.
See more »
Alternate Versions
SPOILER: When 'The Graduate' was first released in Portugal, the ending was cut; the movie ended with a helpless Ben behind the glass of the church watching Elaine getting married. The reason why the film suffered such a major cut was that the erstwhile military regime had a solid basis in Catholic doctrine and family values, and the censorship was given orders not to let any bad example pass to the youth. So it was decided that the movie should end with the lesson that nothing ever should oppose the church, the state and the parents. See more »
Many people who saw The Graduate on its original release, including critics like Roger Ebert, have misinterpreted the main point of the film. Ben Braddock is NOT a hero that is supposed to glorify the rebellion of the 60s generation. The viewer is NOT supposed to stand up and cheer after the final scene. Ben is supposed to represent the confused state of a college graduate stuck in between youth and adulthood. As best depicted by the scene where he holds the hotel door open for both the elderly group and the younger group, he feels alienated from both generations. He does not want to hear the loud music of the car next to him at the drive-thru, nor is he interested in `plastics' or the materialistic pleasures of his parents.
He has no idea what he wants out of life, and only thinks that marrying Elaine will be the solution to this problem. As the last shot depicts (which may be the best final shot in film history), Ben only seems to be happy for a few seconds after he and Elaine get onto the bus with no money, no prospects, and no certain future. In fact, Nichols cleverly uses Paul Simon's Sound of Silence, and drowns out much of the background sound to show that Ben's is in the same position at the end of the film as he is at the beginning. He has not found what he really wants to get out of life and is as confused as ever. This scenario is not dated nor is it only appropriate for the 60s, it can apply to anyone who is lost or has no idea what to do with his or her lives.
Nichols' brilliant direction reinforces the complex exploration of confusion and uncertainty. The flow of shots after he first sleeps with Mrs. Robinson is incredible, as is his use of the swimming pool to enforce his entrapment. He effortlessly switches in and out of focus at different depths of each shot to emphasize certain characters and dialogue. It goes without saying that the performances by Hoffman and Bancroft are first-rate. Add Paul Simon's haunting Sound of Silence, Scarborough Fair, and the instrumentals of what would become Mrs. Robinson, and you have songs and images that downright haunting. As a recent college graduate who was not even born in the 60s, I can say that this film has not dated, and is deserving of its #7 ranking by the American Film Institute.
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Many people who saw The Graduate on its original release, including critics like Roger Ebert, have misinterpreted the main point of the film. Ben Braddock is NOT a hero that is supposed to glorify the rebellion of the 60s generation. The viewer is NOT supposed to stand up and cheer after the final scene. Ben is supposed to represent the confused state of a college graduate stuck in between youth and adulthood. As best depicted by the scene where he holds the hotel door open for both the elderly group and the younger group, he feels alienated from both generations. He does not want to hear the loud music of the car next to him at the drive-thru, nor is he interested in `plastics' or the materialistic pleasures of his parents.
He has no idea what he wants out of life, and only thinks that marrying Elaine will be the solution to this problem. As the last shot depicts (which may be the best final shot in film history), Ben only seems to be happy for a few seconds after he and Elaine get onto the bus with no money, no prospects, and no certain future. In fact, Nichols cleverly uses Paul Simon's Sound of Silence, and drowns out much of the background sound to show that Ben's is in the same position at the end of the film as he is at the beginning. He has not found what he really wants to get out of life and is as confused as ever. This scenario is not dated nor is it only appropriate for the 60s, it can apply to anyone who is lost or has no idea what to do with his or her lives.
Nichols' brilliant direction reinforces the complex exploration of confusion and uncertainty. The flow of shots after he first sleeps with Mrs. Robinson is incredible, as is his use of the swimming pool to enforce his entrapment. He effortlessly switches in and out of focus at different depths of each shot to emphasize certain characters and dialogue. It goes without saying that the performances by Hoffman and Bancroft are first-rate. Add Paul Simon's haunting Sound of Silence, Scarborough Fair, and the instrumentals of what would become Mrs. Robinson, and you have songs and images that downright haunting. As a recent college graduate who was not even born in the 60s, I can say that this film has not dated, and is deserving of its #7 ranking by the American Film Institute.