‘The Graduate’ At 50: Does It Hold Up?

Fifty years ago today, Mike Nichols‘ The Graduate hit theaters and made Dustin Hoffman a star. It’s strange to think about now, especially because of all the things we’ve heard about Hoffman in recent months, but this film marked the first of what would be seven Academy Award nominations for the then-29-year-old actor. Since its release, The Graduate has remained something of a tentpole of classic American pop culture; the iconic Simon & Garfunkel “Mrs. Robinson” track still plays on our radios, and the wedding crashing scene (and ensuing bus ride) is often referenced in other films. At 50 years old, however, does it still manage to hit home the same way it once did? It certainly remains a unique feat of filmmaking, but not in the way one might expect.

The Graduate, at its core, is a story about young adults rejecting the world created by their parents and attempting to create a new path for their generation. 21-year-old Benjamin Braddock (Hoffman) is the perfect everyman to play this part, seemingly trapped in the suffocating land of Los Angeles after he returns from college back east. In the very beginning, his electric chemistry with Mrs. Robinson (Ann Bancroft), gives the movie heat and excitement. There’s something fresh about this interaction, about the bumbling nature of Hoffman’s Ben and Mrs. Robinson’s nonchalant seduction of him. By the time her daughter Elaine (Katharine Ross) enters the picture, however, there’s a strange, unexpected change of tone – one that perhaps takes on a new meaning in light of the recent news cycle.

When Elaine and Ben start their relationship, Ben openly tries to sabotage things in an attempt to distance himself from her because of her mother’s disapproval. While they eventually grow closer and form some kind of connection, there’s a hollowness present that doesn’t quite sit well. We never get to witness any real spark between Elaine and Ben; their coupling feels forced, perhaps in an attempt to get Ben out of bed (literally) with his parents’ generation and into the future. It’s Ben’s relentless infatuation with Elaine, however, that makes things a little… weird, to be frank. By the time he’s banging on the church windows and screaming her name, it’s hard to feel any sense of real satisfaction. Sure, the implication of going into the unknown rather than becoming a sellout like his parents is clear, but Ben’s overall demeanor and behavior when it comes to Elaine is mildly unsettling. It pushes things past the character’s intended so-called “post-college malaise” and instead in the direction of a young man who doesn’t know how to handle his emotions or take no for an answer.

It’s not that The Graduate doesn’t still contain some resonant messages; the desperation to separate ourselves from our parents and be different people and the hope and optimism that drives us to make crazy decisions (like running away from our own weddings) still hits home in some ways. It’s perhaps the film’s protagonist, Ben, that doesn’t stand the test of time. While his frustration with being shown off as a trophy of sorts by his parents and excitement (and awkwardness) in finding Mrs. Robinson both make him a generally likable character at the beginning, his eventual obsession with Elaine – and fixation on her representation of a different life for him – makes him hard to root for. The Graduate is not a bad film by any stretch; it had its time, and it is undoubtedly a significant work of art in many ways. The acting is stunning, the comedy is sharp, and Nichols’ directing chops are on full display. In an era where narcissistic young men are being kicked off their pedestals, however, it’s difficult to rally behind Benjamin Braddock. We’re about fifty years past his prime.

Where to Stream The Graduate