Astonishing - on many levels.

Rating: 10/10 (24 April 2008)

It's interesting how a film that was very much "of its time" holds up so well more than forty years later without feeling dated. I think the 1960s got it right when it came to defining modern sensibilities. This film can be enjoyed on so many levels: for its razor sharp humor, its incisive social commentary, its innovative film techniques, its soundtrack, etc. When I first saw the film in its initial release, I naturally identified with the title character. Now when I watch it, I relate to the parents' generation. I understand how these people got that way. It adds another dimension to the appreciation of this fine film. The cast is perfect, from the unlikely choice of Dustin Hoffman as the protagonist, Anne Bancroft as the unsmiling predator (complete with animal-print wardrobe), Katherine Ross, the most appealing and desirable coed, down through the smallest roles. I like to speculate how the movie would have turned out if the role of Mrs. Robinson had been played by Doris Day (who turned down the part). Doris Day never gave a bad performance, and her sunny disposition masked a darker side. I think she would have been great. As it stands, Anne Bancroft steals the show with her wise and knowing interpretation. I never tire of this intelligent, sophisticated, one-of-a-kind entertainment. As a side note for those who appreciate such minutiae: Eddra Gale, the blond woman seated next to Katherine Ross on the bus in Berkeley, had a small part as a party guest in Katherine Ross' other 1967 film, "Games."