I Can't Believe I waited This Long

Rating: 10/10 (5 July 2000)

I had picked up The Graduate and carried it around the video store several times over the years, but I always chose something else to take home with me. The Graduate was just something I ought to see. After finally taking it home, I had to watch it twice to soak it in.
The Graduate is an unusually quiet movie - not nearly as talky as movies made today. A great deal of activity goes on with no words spoken, just the sound of Simon and Garfunkel. Dustin Hoffman is brilliant as always, playing Benjamin with quiet intensity. Anne Bancroft's Mrs. Robinson is not very likeable throughout most of the film, but there are moments when we learn more about her (as when she and Benjamin talk about her marriage), and we understand better why she is who she is. The ending is brilliant, but we do not know if it is really for the best. The final moments are somber. Just beautiful!