Hammerman Ikon

Hammerman Ikon Film Guide

The Graduate
1967
*****
Director: Mike Nichols
Cast: Anne Bancroft, Dustin Hoffman, Katharine Ross, William Daniels, Murray Hamilton, Elizabeth Wilson, Buck Henry, Brian Avery, Walter Brooke, Norman Fell

Benjamin is a college graduate who is overwhelmed by the high expectations of his parents and family friends. While his future is on hold, Benjamin embarks on an affair with an older married woman, but falls in love with her daughter. This subtle, subversive, and unique romantic comedy is a modern classic for a reason. The memorable images and the songs by Simon & Garfunkel have become a part of our consciousness. The film is inventively directed by Mike Nichols, who deservedly won an Academy Award. Calder Willingham and Buck Henry scripted from Charles Webb's 1963 novel.