"Have you thought about graduate school?"

Rating: 8/10 (22 April 2015)

"The Graduate," to me is a landmark movie. There are so many things that the film does correctly, not just technically but contextually. For starters, the movie seemingly connects the generation gap by a wobbly bridge over troubled waters by introducing sexual relations between a teenager entering his adult years and a fully grown woman with an established life. From this aesthetic quality arose many quarrels during the duration of the plot, which were always filled with tension, and I mean always, even at seemingly calm segments. This, I felt and became anxious as to what was to happen next. Technically, I have never seen a movie of such grace. The unique camera angles and panning techniques utilized really offered many differing perspectives which allowed me to perceive the situations in different lights. My favorite though are the cutting techniques, specifically when facial close-ups occur and then the camera pans out to reveal that the entire setting has changed, and this all happened smoothly. Also the scene where Ben propels himself out of the water onto the raft in the pool only to cut to a scene of himself landing on top of Mrs. Robinson is great.