PHS Paradido ^ ^

The Graduate

The Graduate is a 1967 American comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols.It is based on the 1963 novel The Graduate by Charles Webb, who wrote it shortly after graduating from Williams College. The film tells the story of Benjamin Braddock (played by Dustin Hoffman), a recent university graduate with no well-defined aim in life, who is seduced by an older woman, Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), and then proceeds to fall in love with her daughter Elaine (Katharine Ross). In additioon, the film is #19 on the list of highest-grossing films in the United States and Canada.

I'd like to give a 2 out of 5 beacause the later half of the movie results in a common love story without any special technologies and very touching plot. Although someone says that it expresses the comfliction between 2 different generations successfully, and some blue scenes in it arouse a lot of pungent criticism, whatever, its later part is still an average romance film. And Ben's sudden falling in love with Elaine makes me confused. How can he want to marry his mistress's daughter in such short time ,and they just have hanged out once?! It will be more convincing if Ben says he loves Mrs. Robinson! On the other hand, the songs in the movie are good ,including“Mrs. Robinson,” “Scarborough Fair/Canticle,” “The Sound of Silence,” and “April Come She Will.” But it seems the music repeats too much which leads the audience get tired of it gradually as they watching.

However, i appreciate the front part of the movie because of the outstanding performance of Anne Bancroft(Mrs.Robinson).


Trivia

Actor Robert Redford was an early hopeful for the part of Ben but turned it down because he felt he couldn’t act naïve enough for the role. In addition, actor Charles Grodin turned down the part following a disagreement over his salary.
The Graduate screenwriter Buck Henry also plays the role of the room clerk in the film.
Quotes

Mr. McGuire (at graduation party): “I just want to say one word to you … just one word.”
Braddock: “Yes, sir.”
McGuire: “Are you listening?”
Braddock: “Yes, sir I am.”
McGuire: “Plastics.”
Thanks to Microsoft ? Encarta ? 2009. ? 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation.
 
http://www.google.com.hk/images?client=aff-cs-360se&oe=UTF-8&q=the%20graduate&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&hl=zh-cn&tab=wi&biw=1007&bih=396
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Graduate

About Psycho

Psycho is a 1960 American psychological thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starred by Anthony Perkins,Vera Miles, John Gavin and Janet Leigh, and music by Bernard Herrmann. In addition, Janet Leigh earned a Golden Globe Award for her performance as Marion Crane. 

As I see it, Psycho is really worthy its reputation, so I'd like to give a 4 out of 5. The scary film begins with Marion stealing $40,000 from her boss and trying to hide the money in her boyfriend Sam's house. Unluckily, she aroused the policeman's suspiction along her way. Hitchcook used a kind of mysterious and jittery music to show the character was thrown into an extreme panic, which leads the audience guess incorrectly that Marion was the pxycho. However, the owner of the Bates Hotel is the real mad one. Norman,a shy young man, asked Marion to have dinner with her, but the dinner finally became a dispute on Norman's mother. When Marion came back her room to take shower, Norman was peeping through a hole and going to commit a murder. He rushed into the bathroom, made a sudden attack towards the undressded girl, and finally killed her. Nevertheless, Marion would never know who was the criminal because the insane man was in her mother's clothes. Then comes a series of inquiries from both the detective, the victim's sister and boyfriend. They collected the evidence and captured the psycho eventually.After Norman's arrest, a psychiatrist tells everyone that Norman's dead mother is living in Norman's psyche as an alternate personality. I don't like these analysis scenes because they break the mystery of the horror film. Horror films should be well-knit and frightening until the end. In my opinion, Hitchcook should set another scene which replays the early painful experience of the crazy boy to make the movie even darker. In spite of this, I like the plot especially the last scene: Norman sits in a cell, thinking in "Mother's" voice.

"It's sad when a mother has to speak the words that condemn her own son, but I couldn't allow them to believe that I would commit murder. They'll put him away now, as I should have years ago. He was always bad, and in the end, he intended to tell them I killed those girls and that man, as if I could do anything except just sit and stare, like one of his stuffed birds. Well, they know I can't even move a finger, and I won't. I'll just sit here and be quiet, just in case they do suspect me. [pause] They're probably watching me. Well, let them. Let them see what kind of a person I am. I'm not even gonna swat that fly. I hope they are watching. They'll see. They'll see and they'll know, and they'll say,'Why, she wouldn't even harm a fly.'"

Although someone says that the story is predictable, Psycho, the most classic horror film, is outstanding undoubtedly.

Trivia

The filmmaker used chocolate sauce for blood in the shower scene.
Quote

Norman Bates (referring to his mother): “She just goes a little mad sometimes. We all go a little mad sometimes. Haven't you?”
 
thanks to http://www.google.com.hk/images?client=aff-cs-360se&oe=UTF-8&q=psycho&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&hl=zh-cn&tab=wi&biw=1007&bih=396
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psycho_(film)
 
http://www.popgadget.net/2006/02/psycho_action_f.php
 
Microsoft Student Encarta  2009.

Ben Hur Vodcast

http://tinyurl.com/25n9dq3

My Top 10 Favourite Films

1. Wizard of Oz
2. Interview with Vampire
3. Gone with the Wind
4. Scaramouche
5. Vampires Suck
6. Anastasia
7. Cracks
8. A Streetcar Named Desire
9. A Single Man
10. The Picture of Dorian Gray