Transcends Time: A True Classic

Rating: 9/10 (25 February 2006)

This film is nearly 40 years old but the themes raised in the film are as relevant today as they were then. The basic premise is that Benjamin Braddock (Hoffman) comes back home from school in the East as a scholarship winner. His parents, friends and relatives all believe that he is a young man of substance with a great future ahead. To avoid a party that his parents held for his triumphant return he reluctantly drives back Mrs Robinson (Anne Bankroft)to her home. She seduces him and they have a summer affair. However, he falls in love with her daughter Elaine Robinson and that is when the fun and games truly begin.
For me the most fascinating part of the film is the way in which Benjamin violently rejects the pigeon holed view of the future that his elders have in mind for him. He is from a wealthy family and the American Dream is their for the taking as long as he continues on the right path. I think he realises that he cannot become a person in his right right until he has some experiences on the wrong path. Halfway, through the film there is a scene where he just lays in his parents pool doing nothing other than waiting for his next sordid night with Mrs Robinson. The music by Simon and Garfunkel is a perfect aid to help illustrate the lack of direction and purpose that Benjamin is feeling.
Through his parents insistence he is forced to take out Elaine Robinson at the express forbidding of Mrs Robinson. He strikes a relationship with Elaine and is willing to forget about his affair with her mother. However, Mrs Robinson does all that she can to keep them apart. This includes sending Elain to Berkely, alleging that she was raped by Benjamin and setting up a quick marriage for Elain, to a young man she met at college.
This is the moment that Benjamin's lack of direction, purpose and lethargy disappear and he knows what he really wants in life. He pursues Elaine to Berkely University and lets no obstacle get in his way to gain her love and companionship. This involves many hilarious scenes and especially the crazy ending which is totally unbelievable but fun none the less.
Dustin Hoffman Puts in a solid performance as the misdirected young man trying to find his place in the world. However, the star of the show is Anne Bancroft as the bored housewife posing as a super confident, stylish and refined mature lady. Although in reality she was only six years older than Hoffman, she was able to convey far more experience and worldliness, to make it believable that she was old enough to have been Benjamin's mother.
This film is a true classic as it has stood the test of time and in my humble opinion will continue to stand the test of time. The main theme of the film transcends time and will captivate any audience in any time. That theme of course is the difficulty we all face to find our place and purpose in this world.