The Graduate

The Graduate

Sidey: This is movie four of our four episode marathon. About well this isn't about weddings, but it does feature a very famous wedding scene. Yeah.

Reegs: Yeah.

Sidey: It's a graduate 1967. Has everyone seen this before? Yeah.

Dan: We,

Sidey: It's directed by Mike Nichols starring Dustin Hoffman and Catherine Ross and Anne Bancroft, I suppose most memorably Also, when I was watching it this time, noticed a very, very, very brief appearance by Richard Dreyfus.

Reegs: Oh really?

Sidey: Yeah. It's his second ever appearance on screen, and he says, shall I get the cops? I'll go call the cops. Okay. And then he just appears again.

Reegs: You are the only one of us who's seen this as

Sidey: this time. Yeah. I, I refreshed it. He like, like some Jerry was a long, long time ago. And it starts, there was a film we watched recently, which recreated this shot.

See him arriving in at the airport. That's right. And he just stands on the traveler thing and we just watch him and he is looking around and we just see Justin Hoffman kind of looking about. Yeah. Then it cuts and he's just in front of a fish tank and he's [00:01:00] looking kind of, know, ill at ease.

He's not, he's not completely comfortable, but he is in his room and he is being summoned by his parents. And wouldn't you know it, he's just graduated and this is in coming home, and his parents have organized this big soiree at the house, but there's no one his age there. It's all just his parents'

friends.

Reegs: But it's for his graduation,

Sidey: for his graduation. It's for his graduation, but really it's for his parents' benefit because he's some sort of super high achieving scholar. He's smashed loads of stuff, not just academic wise, but also extracurricular things. He's. Been

Reegs: being treated like a male debutante.

Sidey: Yes. And all his parents' friends are there to bask in his glory at how amazing he's done.

But he is having a kind of really early midlife crisis or existential crisis about what's next? What am I actually gonna do? And you really get the feeling that his whole life to date has just been completely mapped out and controlled by his parents. You are gonna do this. I think it. Is we, the, the, the woman that he carries on with first, Mrs.

Robinson, [00:02:00] her husband is his father's business partner. And I think they're lawyers and I think it's assumed that he's just gonna go in and carry on the business after his

Dan: which,

you know, given the time would've.

Probably been true. Lots of people watching this would've had their ma life, their early life anyway mapped out, or the expectations certainly put into place. Like, you'll graduate, you'll get this, you'll fo you know,

Sidey: and there's lots of stuff in this that's, that's obviously of its time. It, this is the man going out to work, the woman's at home, keeping the house. Yeah. Doing all that sort of stuff. Which some are fine with, others are less fulfilled at the party.

There's one bit that found quite funny, but he gets, he gets approached by one of his father's friends and he says, I need to have a word with you. And he. He's like, come, come with me. And he takes him outside and he goes, I've just got one word to say to you. And he's like, he's like waiting. And he goes, plastics.

Yeah.

And he's like, okay. And he goes, think about it. And I'm like, what?

Reegs: What? Okay.

Sidey: But then

Dan: he was

Sidey: he goes [00:03:00] back up to his room. He, he just needs to escape this party. 'cause it's all just like old people going, oh, you your mate, what is next? Whatcha doing? And he's just like, not with it. And he goes upstairs and Mrs.

Robinson comes up. And that's all he ever calls her. Throughout all their

throughout all their carryings on, he always says to her, Mrs. Robinson,

Reegs: even in the book,

Sidey: in the book she's, yeah, she says, I need to get out of here. And my husband's taken the car. Can you gimme a Lyft home? And he's been given this Alpha Romeo Spider 1600.

It's fucking gorgeous

Dan: and he can't wait to get out as well

Sidey: And he's like, yeah, I'm happy to fuck this off. But you can see he's still quite nervous. He's always like, touch with like Woody Allen, like character about, he's this like skittish, kind of like Yeah. Nervous character. And she's pulled up to her house and it

Reegs: because he is how old?

Sidey: 17, 21.

21.

He's just graduated college, so it'd be 2021. And they pull up to this gaff and it's like a fucking castle. It's absolutely enormous. And she says to him, I, I need you to come inside. I don't like going into the house when it's dark. And so they have the door and turn the light on. He's like, right, I'm gonna fuck off now.

And she's like, no, no, I still don't like, [00:04:00] he's like, but it's all light and you can see where this is going. And she's like, no, no. I need you to

Reegs: no, this is the very famous scene,

isn't it?

Sidey: is there Well, it's, it is, yes and no.

Dan: well, he is fairly innocent. He's really at this stage, not

Sidey: to me, it was obvious that he was a virgin.

Dan: Yeah,

yeah. And

Reegs: he's completely out of his

Sidey: it is explicitly stated later on, but at this point he's so uncomfortable. I mean, to be fair, like she's a, a lot older than him. But she beckons him in and she, she keeps making up these excuses of why he needs to come in. And he's like, okay. And then she offers him a drink.

He says, no, but she pours him a drink. They've got this mad bar set up again.

Reegs: Again. It's another one where if you flipped the genders, this would be really

Dan: but, but draw drawing on your own experiences. Have you ever had a Ms. Robinson scenario? Re is

Reegs: No,

Dan: here. Oh, you're, you,

Reegs: because I haven't,

Dan: not, no,

Reegs: you've got a face and you are smiling.

Sidey: If, if only,

Dan: If, if you wanted to share it, I mean, you can share it off, off mic if you want to, but I'd like to hear it.

Reegs: All right. I'll tell it to you [00:05:00] now and then we'll switch off and then we'll go back on.

Dan: Motherfucker. Really? I

Reegs: know. Yeah.

Dan: 77 though. That's old.

Sidey: So she's, she's more and more excuses and, and making a stay and she's. Eventually it becomes clear to him. He's like, whoa, whoa, whoa. Where's this going? You know? I I, and she just puts her leg up on a chair. Yeah. Flashes her stockings at him. And then you get the shot, which is

Reegs: through her leg,

Sidey: through her leg.

Her leg cocked up, like in the triangle with him looking through. Yeah. And he's saying, no, I'm, I've gotta

leave.

Reegs: was he looking at?

Sidey: He was looking at her face. Yeah. And he's very proud and she goes upstairs and, and summons him to come upstairs. She makes up a story of needing her purse. He's like, I'll just leave it on the landing.

She's like, no, fucking bring it into the bathroom. And he goes upstairs. Then he hears the door and he fucking panics and the husband is, has turned up. And he goes downstairs and he's just like. Even more nervous now. Yeah. And the husband's saying have a drink. Sit with me. Let me give you a few words of advice.

He goes, you just need to go around and start doing some shagging. He says to him, [00:06:00] you need to go and sell your oats. Don't settle down. Just enjoy yourself. And it's like completely the opposite message that he's getting from his father, which is, you know, straight into work now, or graduate school or whatever it is.

Reegs: And also

Sidey: and he actually says,

Reegs: most wants to fuck him is this guy's wife.

Sidey: What is like really odd? As a parent of a daughter, he said he's going, yeah, you need to you need to stay your oats, you need to go out and do some shagging. Why don't you call my daughter? He says, my daughter's at, call her. She's my daughter.

She's straight one. You should call her when she's back in town. You're like. I don't think I'd be saying

Dan: Well, maybe just trying to link the families. I dunno. But yeah, it's mixed messages,

Reegs: I

Sidey: Anyway, as he is leaving, he go, he goes, and Mrs. Robinson says, look, anytime you wanna fuck me. She doesn't say it quite as well.

It's, it is actually as explicit. It actually doesn't swear. Any, anytime, any, anything, just call me up. We'll arrange it. I'll come over and we'll have some fun. And he's like, oh my God. Oh Jesus. So he goes off and he does eventually he does call her. And he's at a hotel. She says, well just get, find a hotel, [00:07:00] sort that out, and I'll come and meet you.

Just let me know. So he has this awkward thing where he's, he's too nervous to actually go to the desk and book a room. So he meets there for a drink, and then eventually there's some shenanigans where they get the room and they go up and they do have these discussions. And then it's explicit, like where she's on dressing and she says the line.

Do you, do you want me to seduce you? Yeah. She's like, wait, you've never done this before, have you? And he gets all really embarrassed then, and she says, don't worry, you know, blah, blah, blah. And he has to do it with the lights off and all that sort of stuff. And then. It really good here. The, the direction of the film is fucking brilliant because you get a bit where he's just watching telly and then it it dissolves into him watching telly in the room with her, walking past the telly and it's fucking seamless.

Really, really well done. And, and basically he has sex once and he is gone from being like a sort of bookish nerd. Yeah. To looking like he's in the velvet

Reegs: underground. Yeah, yeah,

Sidey: really good.

Reegs: That always happens in movies to be fair, doesn't it? You have one sha and Yeah,

Sidey: He's got these like shades on. He looks like fucking Lou Reed. And

Dan: he, he's in the Taft Hotel,

Sidey: That's it.

Dan: He, he kind of checks in [00:08:00] under the name Gladstone, which. Is

Sidey: it, it, it kicks him in the ass a bit later on. But he have we see about three or four different encounters that they have together, but who knows how many more there were.

Reegs: And each time it's a

Sidey: shame, but eventually, they start talking, he's, he, they just turn up and fuck. But this time he wants to have a conversation with her and he is asking her all these sort of really, he just doesn't have an in for any sort of conversation?

Reegs: Well, they don't have any shared life

Sidey: She has told him,

Reegs: twice, she's like two and a half times his age or whatever

Sidey: Is it she has told him that she's an alcoholic. Yeah. While she's like throwing whiskey down her neck. And she's obviously very damaged in some way, obviously in a, I think it's a, just a completely loveless marriage. I don't, it is.

I, I suspect I haven't read the book, but I suspect it's more I. Backstory in the book. And he says, why don't we talk about art? And she says, I dunno anything about art. And then he asked her what she did in college and she says, art. And then it's just really striking. And they eventually stopped talking about her daughter.

And he says, she says, you'd not be, you wouldn't be good enough for her anyway. And that really puts him out. He's like, well, I'm good enough to fuck you, but,[00:09:00]

and she's like, well, you're not gonna fuck my daughter anyway. And so they have her falling out. He says, well, what are we doing anyway? You know, this is, there's no future in this, and if anyone found out it'd be a disaster.

So they have a row and eventually they, they sort of calm down and they, then it's just, it becomes like a real procedural where they, they get undressed again. But you can see there's. No one's actually into it anymore. Yeah. So they kind of knocked that on the head and he gets more pressure from both his parents and the hu the Mrs.

Robinson's husband to take the daughter out. Yeah. She's gonna be back in town from Berkeley this weekend. And he, he does agree that he would never see the daughter to Mrs. Robinson, but he turns up at the house to take Elaine out and can see Mrs. Robinson fucking

Dan: Yeah.

Sidey: And as they, everyone leaves the room, he's left in there with this Robinson.

He said, look, it's just a one time thing. I've just gotta take her out to get everyone off my back. And after that I won't, you know, I won't see her again. Yeah. And he's, to make sure that she won't like him, he takes her to basically a strip show. It's like a burlesque, but like [00:10:00] tits out strip show. And it comes over.

Yeah, he's like hoing it down, the motorway, like a maniac. And she says, do you always drive like this? And he says, yeah. And then he takes her into this thing, which even he's not into, and they give him a table right at the front of the stage and the bird is swinging her tits around. She's got nipple houses, which are like battering laying on the head and he looks and she's crying and he's, and then he is like, fuck, this is really bad

Reegs: Yeah. This is an awful

Sidey: So some of the stuff in the movie is. Maybe not perfect and it's this bit, so they, they go out and he sort of talk, but

Dan: kind of mistakes that people make, you know?

Sidey: I know this is a pretty big one. He's like been a fucking asshole to her. He talks around really quickly while she's crying her eyes out and then they continue the date and they, you know, she's like won over.

And I'm a bit like, come on man. There's like more to it. There would be more to it

Reegs: be a bit like, this guy's a fucking psycho for

Dan: Yeah. But she's young.

She's 21. She's, you know, she's out, she's expecting like a dad

Sidey: I, but I think people are a bit more reserved in the sixties.

Dan: yeah. but

Sidey: Maybe not. But anyway, that's why I felt watching [00:11:00] it.

And so they, they do have this burgeoning kind of thing where he, he says he'll take her out for a drive again, and they'll do this, that and the other. And then Mrs. Robinsons comes out onto the drive and says you need to fuck off. Do not see my daughter again. Or I will tell everyone that we've been shagging.

1. And he's fucking hell. That's really bad. So he does, but he does turn up and actually he, he pulls the pin first and because he has said to Elaine that he's been having, that he had been having an affair with someone that had a son. He says but that's over now. And so he's not seeing anyone.

And she's like, okay, well fine. If that's over, then you know, we can see each other. And then when he is next in the house and he can see Mr. Robinson staring at him fucking giving him death stare. And she's like, she looks like a right state now. She's like, I was thinking, God,

Reegs: really drunk

and

Sidey: probably kill herself.

Elaine looks at him and he says, when I told you that I was having an affair. And then she looks at her mother and she looks back at him and she's like, oh my God. You know, she like the penny [00:12:00] drops. And you're like, well, that's the end of that then, because that's a tough one to, to recover

Dan: that. It is. That's family ties

Sidey: Right, and then at this point in the movie. She goes back to college and he is realizes that the relationship he was in with Mr. Robinson was obviously really self-destructive for both of them and, and crazy. And actually he really does like Elaine. Yeah. I think he just has an infatuation with her, but he convinces himself, he's in love with her and he calls his parents into the kitchen.

He says, I'm gonna marry that girl. And they're all like, yeah. They're like, like, oh, just so happy. And they're like, oh, I'm gonna phone the Robinsons now. And, and he's like, no, I haven't. She doesn't know that yet. Yeah. And you're like, oh, right. The parents, well, it sounds a bit half-baked, and he goes, no, it's completely baked.

And he just drives his car off goes up to Berkeley and just moves into the college. He just starts attending classes following her around. He gets a room in the, like some student digs.

Reegs: Completely normal stalker

Sidey: and you're watching this going, this could easily be with a change of soundtrack and there's few amendments to the script.

Like a mad [00:13:00] stalker thing. Yeah. You know, a horror movie, psychological thriller. Yeah. Instead it's a sort of romantic, romantic thing. Romantic

And eventually he he reveals himself to her. He stalks her and follows her. Until she gets on a bus and then he, she sees him running along next to the bus, like a maniac, and he gets on the bus and sits behind there and says, oh, isn't this a coincidence?

And the last interaction that she had had with him face to face was when he told her that he'd been fucking her mom. Yeah. And. She, she, then she comes to his dorm room, his, his room in the digs and says that her mother had explained it, that he had raped her. And he's like, no, that's not what happened at all.

I gave her a Lyft home and she seduced me. She took her clothes off and that's how it happened. But she kind of buys, but she also screams, and this is when Richard DRA appears and says, I'll call the cops. So he gets volleyed out of those that. Accommodation, but she's, after this interaction, she's sort of okay with it.

She's okay with [00:14:00] everything. And she's, he, he,

Reegs: even though her own mom has accused him of

Sidey: she's seeing someone. 'cause on the bus, he'd followed her. He'd said, I'll ride. She said, I'm meeting someone at the zoo. So he follows her to the zoo and meets this guy that she's dating. And he says to her. I want them, I want to marry you.

And she's like, Hmm, I need to think about it. And you're like, why? He's like, complete asshole. He's like completely fucked over and like,

Reegs: He like did that

Sidey: Yeah. He's done nothing to warrant like a second date, let alone. And she says, oh, I, maybe I need to think about it. And, and she said, and I also said that I'd maybe marry that other fella.

And you're like, you are like off your fucking rocker. You know? You need to fucking rethink this.

Dan: People are crazy though.

Sidey: Crazy in love. Mm-hmm. Yeah. And he gets volleyed out of his place. And actually she decides he's, he goes to where she's staying and she's left and she's left a note for him, which he reads from her roommate and it says, oh hi Benjamin.

I've decided to fuck college off and I'm gonna marry that other [00:15:00] guy. I've left Berkeley. So he has to make a load of calls and track 'em down. And this is the, the sort of scene that we're building up to. We've seen like before, but we've seen it taken off as well. Memorably, Waynes well too, does this bit in the car.

And so he goes, he he's driving out to, and he goes to a garage and he ma he's, he makes a phone call there to her. Family and some like an assistant answers. And, and he pretends to be the vicar that he doesn't know which church he's getting, he's doing the marriage at and they send him to this Presbyterian church.

This fucking enormous like yeah.

Reegs: Type, of

Sidey: brutalist like thing is. And he can't get in the front door, so he goes up the back steps. And he's pounding on the window the bit that we've all seen before. And but this, they have got married. They, they've done the, the words, I think they've obviously not signed the paperwork, but they've had the kiss, you know, you're now a man and wife.

They've had the KISS ceremony and it's the, you know, they all, everyone looks around, the congregation looks round and she's sort of staring at Emma and sort of walks towards the window and then you see them mouthing like son of a bitch. And as she says something, the other family says something and Anne Bancroft grabs her.

'cause [00:16:00] that's all silent then. Yeah. And then Anne Bancroft says something to her like, what are you doing? She says, it's not too late for me. You know, sort of inferring that, you know. Her mother's father

Dan: the one,

Sidey: this other guy wasn't the one. And her mom's like, fucking sold her life away, like, and is not happy.

And, and she said, I'm not gonna live my life like you. Yeah. So they just fucking leg it out. He, he tries to fend them off with the cross, whatever. He is like waving the cross at all the people

Dan: of wedges it in the door and traps 'em all

inside,

Sidey: Yeah. And then he, they get on the, the bus on

Reegs: across the street,

Sidey: everyone's just looking at them on the bus, like, what the fuck is going on here?

Laughing

Dan: and smiling,

and

Sidey: if the camera,

Reegs: the backstreet

Sidey: Yeah. The camera kind of lingers on as they're smiling and then they sort of smiles just sort of fade away into like. Whoa.

Reegs: the fuck happens next?

Sidey: exactly. That

Dan: we all have, yeah

Sidey: it is there's loads of stuff that's strange about it. Like the, she would ne in my mind, like she would never have got with him.

No, not in a fucking million years. It

Reegs: He sounds like a crazy

Sidey: And it's also, when you look back on it, really like he's abused by Mrs. Robinson. She, she takes complete [00:17:00] advantage of him. She's older, I

Dan: though. I mean, he's not like the youngest

Sidey: I say it

Reegs: But it's more about emotional maturity and that sort of, that's what I remembered from watching it.

He's like a

Dan: Yeah. No, he,

He's

Sidey: behaving like a child. He has never really made any decision for himself. It's always been done

Dan: are we at 21? Particularly when you've been at school that whole time, you have no real life experience. You only know what's in front of you is the next day at school. The

Sidey: next day, and it's, it's no good for her either.

She's completely damaged. She's an alcoholic. She states that right away. She's completely loveless and just seems like, I don't know.

Reegs: Just 'cause she's a bit fit and that scene's kind of horny where she's trying to

Sidey: seems, likes she is not a bit fit. She is fucking knockout.

Reegs: Yeah. Okay. Well, yeah, just, just because of that right? You, it doesn't make it any more

Dan: long way.

Reegs: better,

Dan: goes a long way for some

Sidey: No, it's, it's weird when you watch it now, obviously it's very strange. Catherine

Reegs: I

Sidey: so beautiful as well, I think,

Reegs: it? I think it's just like, well

Dan: it,

Sidey: I think the, I think the stuff that they were showing on the screen was quite I suspect was quite diff like new.

[00:18:00] You wouldn't have probably got this, 'cause you

Reegs: That kind of female

Sidey: she stripped naked and. He turns around, he, they do the thing three times where he turns round. Yeah. And they very quickly, like almost subliminally, like show you her breasts. Then they, they pan day don't see her muff,

Reegs: well because he can't look 'cause

Sidey: He's like, and I think that would've been quite a lot. Yeah. For this time, although it's the thing, the sixties, but still on

Reegs: borderline pedo.

Yeah. Yeah.

Dan: Well also like, an older woman wanting a, a younger man, I mean, it came out then the Ms. Robinson, it was

Reegs: oh yeah, that's the thing now, isn't it? The Mrs. Robinson, you know, complex

Dan: this absolute

Sidey: cliche,

but in spite of all that stuff, I absolutely fucking love this. I really loved watching it. Again, I might watch it home when I get back. Soundtrack soundtrack's amazing. It's obviously, it's the famous, famous Simon and Garfunkel, but what they do is they play.

Sound of silence twice.

really?

Yeah. And then they play Mr. No, they only, he only hums that. Oh. And then they play. Scarborough affair three times

Reegs: Fucking hell.[00:19:00]

Sidey: Yeah. There's so many other great Simon Gar, you get chucked in here. Like they go to the zoo and they don't play the fucking song that's about the zoo.

He

Reegs: He just does the do do or something doesn't

Sidey: Yeah. And there's a bit, I think a bit of it sort of on like a brass, but they don't do the song.

Dan: troubled water at any point?

Sidey: No, I didn't know the chron, not chronology of when the songs were released compared to when this film was released, but yeah, I mean, I like scar affair three times. You'd bit like really

someone else.

Reegs: I remember when I watched this, like really liking it, but it not at all being what I thought it was about, considering its reputation in popular culture about Mrs.

Robinson, the Seduces and all that. And when you watch it, you're like, oh no, this is actually kind of horrifying

Sidey: Yeah. It's, it's weird.

The direction is fucking brilliant. I really, I thought that was fantastic. Soundtrack kicks ass. The performs are all really good.

Dan: Young Dustin Hoffman.

Sidey: the other thing about him, I just, I look at him and I think he's just like some short dude nebbish it does, doesn't look very like sexually desirable, but whatever.

Reegs: done [00:20:00] that to loads of these kids, probably

Sidey: Well, I'm more so like the Catherine Ross Elaine character. I was thinking, why would she be in Tim? He is just like, well, '

Reegs: cause he's the graduate.

Sidey: Yeah, true. Yeah, it looks fucking fantastic.

Performances are really good. I really liked it even though it's probably quite problematic and whatever. But, huge. Recommend