Alienation and Simon and Garfunkle

Rating: Null/10 (26 January 2006)

The movie The Graduate is full of images of youthful alienation, Christian imagery and Simon and Garfunkle. It's a very powerful film in its own right and conveys the feelings of pretty much every college graduate. Being almost a college graduate myself, I was really able to connect with this film. There are not many characters presented in this film, but that only adds to Benjamin Braddock's feelings of loneliness.
One of the first scenes in the movie focuses on Benjamin sitting in front of an aquarium. My eye first went to the scuba diver at the bottom of the tank and how alone it looked even though it was surrounded by fish. Later in the movie Benjamin appears in a very similar scuba outfit as his parents are coercing him to get into the pool. He too seems very much alone in this scuba outfit, for he cannot hear what they are saying to him. Benjamin is literally caught between to worlds. One scene that particularly struck me was when he was holding the door open at the Taft Hotel. We see swarms of old people passing him. They are already done with their lives as Benjamin holds the door open for them to pass. This image was interesting to see in reference to the film. It seems as though Benjamin will never reach this phase of his life, but he is at a point where he needs to make a decision.
This film was revolutionary in its time, but to the modern viewer seems very tame. We never actually see Benjamin and Mrs. Robinson having sex, but we see them before and after. The quick flashes they use to express the fact that Mrs. Robinson is naked seem very odd but I'm sure that it was quite revealing for the time. Another technique that seemed unique to this film was how they moved from one scene to the next. Benjamin was often seen in darkness as he moved from his house to the Taft Hotel with Mrs. Robinson. The contrast was quite effective and showed what his summer consisted of. The music that accompanies certain scenes was very effective as well. Simon and Garfunkel seemed like the perfect accompaniment to Benjamin's escapades. At the end, as in the beginning, the song "Hello Darkness My Old Friend" is playing as Elaine and he ride off on the bus together. This does not seem very indicative of a happy ending, but we can't be sure. We are left to linger on the actual words in the song and wonder what will become of Benjamin Braddock. He still seems to have no idea of what he wants to do or where he wants to end up, but he smiles for what seems like the first time in the film. Another moment where music was used as part of the plot was when Benjamin is driving to stop Elaine's wedding. "Here's to your Mrs. Robinson" is playing as he drives and then slowly begins to slow down and fade, to an eventual stop. This effect coincides with Benjamin's car as it begins to slow down and eventually die on the side of the road.
Christian imagery also has a presence in this film. The most obvious and effective image is when Benjamin reaches the church, but is looking down on the ceremony already in progress. Looking up at him in his white coat illuminated by light with his hands up and to the side, resembles the image of Christ on the cross very clearly. Everything around him is white and what he sees has the effect of a crucifixion. The different techniques this film uses can be seen in many present day films so they don't really stand out as new or different, but realizing that this movie is where they probably came from makes it that much more impressive to watch. Not only is the film well acted, but it is also well filmed and directed.