Fools, dancing around in a vicious circle

Rating: Null/10 (11 August 2018)

Young Benjamin Braddock (Dusting Hoffman) has just graduated from college, but now he doesn't seem to know what to do with his life. His parents are not of much help, being more interested in climbing the social ladder and having him help them along as the perfect, dutiful son.
Enter Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), an old family friend, with whom Ben begins an affair to relieve some of his inner anxiety. Later on he also meets Mrs. Robinson's daughter, Elaine (Katharine Ross).
The Graduate could be seen as a romantic comedy. The plot itself, if a bit heavy, especially for its time, is lighthearted enough and the character archetypes on display are such that the jokes practically write themselves. Yet a dark undercurrent floats just beneath the surface, transforming the whole thing into a scathing satire. The song The Sound of Silence, by Simon & Garfunkel, is often played over central scenes, almost functioning as the theme for the whole film. And anyone who has ever heard the song knows that it's rather dark in its message, despite the light melody. "Hello darkness, my old friend" indeed.
What this film is trying to talk about is being trapped in a circle from which you cannot escape. Ben's character gets progressively worse as the movie goes on, but you cannot really blame him, not entirely. You can see from his parents and from Mrs. Robinson and her husband that he's merely imitating the sins of the last generation. It's easy to see that he and Elaine could very easily end up just as shallow and empty as their parents. It wouldn't take much. And that's the horror behind the usual rom-com antics.
A peculiar film. It requires you to look underneath the surface, to question the events that are taking place. And for that it needs to be praised.