The Graduate
1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.
In our last class we discussed the film, The Graduate. The film was directed by Mike Nichols and the screenplay was by Buck Henry and Calder Willingham. It was a huge hit at the box office. It received 7 Oscars nominations. One for Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Leading Actor, Best Leading Actress, and Best Supporting Actress and took home the award for Best Director. The Graduate was known as one of the first true youth rebellion films, and was also famous for the use of overlapping cuts.
2) Find a related article (on the film, directed, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, ect.) You can use the library or the internet. Cite the article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content.
The article I found was on the making of The Graduate, specifically thr casting. Mike Nichols wanted Doris Day for Mrs. Robinson and Robert Redford for Ben Braddock. Neither of that happen. Doris Day turned down the role due to nudity in certain scenes. Patricia Neal turned down the role due to just recovering from a stroke and didn't feel ready to accept such a major role. After saying no to Ingrid Bergman, Audrey Hepburn, and Jane Fonda, the producers felt that Anna Bancroft would be prefect as Mrs. Robinson. For her younger daughter, Elaine, casting was a major issue. Patty Duke, Sally Field, Shirley MacLaine, and Joan Collins all turned down the role. After a shortlist of Ann-Margret, Goldie Hawn, and Natalie Wood, the role went to Katharine Ross. When it came to role of Ben, Robert Redford and Warren Beatty were among the top choices. Beatty turned it down due to a prior commitment and Mike Nichols believed that Redford didn't have the underdog flair that Dustin Hoffman had. Nichols really enjoyed Hoffman true raw talent during a cold reading with Katharine Ross, a love scene from the movie and Nichols loved Hoffman's awkwardness.
3) Apply the article to the film screened in class.
Overall, the article really gave us a outlook on the casting that went into The Graduate. Casting must have been such a difficult process with great and complex characters seen in the film. A great example of the difficult casting process was choosing Dustin Hoffman. Hoffman was not well known and was given a role of such depth and made a name for himself just because one person gave him that chance. Also Anne Bancroft and Katharine Ross were excellent in their performances as mother and daughter. All together, many people believe that the casting of the film is one of the many reason the film was so successful.
4) Write a critical analysis of the film , including your personal opinion, formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text materials and the article.
The Graduate is one of best films I have seen in this class. From the soundtrack, to the story line, to the acing, this film is truly iconic. This movie is decades old and still relatable to every young adult, especially college students. The casting also made this film as great as it was and I am very happy they did not go with well known names back then.
CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM
1) (x) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.
2) (x) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.
3) (x) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.
4) (x) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.
5) (x) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.
6) (x) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.
7) (x) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.
8) (x) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.
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