Originally published: 12 May 2025
I recently watched The Graduate (1967) for the first time. Previously, I’d only had a vague idea as to its plot (spoiler: the whole affair thing), and I knew there was a Mrs Robinson character (thanks Simon and Garfunkel!). Given what I already knew about the movie, I didn’t expect that I would be completely blown away by the film - in some sense I am able to relate this to my personal life (thankfully, not the affair part), and for that I am forever grateful.
It is not the plot of the movie that is the most impressive: the idea of having a young adult having an affair with an older woman and then falling for her daughter sounds like a cheesy romcom flick, but The Graduate is able to accomplish so much more than that. The main character, Benjamin, is just a young man who’s lost in life, unsure of what to do after finishing university, despite having performed stellarly and attaining multiple awards. Benjamin’s parents only worsen his anxiety; they boast about him to their many friends, making Benjamin perform in front of them. Amidst all this, Benjamin doesn’t get anywhere closer to figuring out what he’s doing (who can blame him?).
At one of these “parties”, Benjamin meets Mrs Robinson, who persuades Benjamin to drive her home and then attempts to seduce him. Poor Benjamin doesn’t know how to react - he doesn’t know what to expect from Mrs Robinson, with the expectations from his parents and society still weighing heavily on him.
Still, the pressure on Benjamin continues building.
Then, Benjamin cracks.
It’s not hard to see why - he sees this as an escape from the pressures that everyone is placing on him, and is in a way rebelling against society at large. He finds solace in the fact that Mrs Robinson expects nothing from him; he spends his summer relaxed, alternating between lazing in the pool and meeting Mrs Robinson.
Of course, this doesn’t last for long - Mrs Robinson opens up about her marriage and forbids Benjamin from seeing her daughter (which, of course, plants the seeds of desire). He does try to push her daughter (Elaine) initially by bringing her to a strip club(!), but then feels bad for her; they bond over their shared uncertainty of a future, and thus, a romance is born.
The rest of the movie sees Benjamin trying to get Elaine, even while her parents try to get in the way. At the end, Benjamin disrupts Elaine’s wedding to another man (arranged by her parents), and they run away onto a bus, getting stares from every passenger (one must imagine that Elaine is still in her wedding gown). As they travel along, their ecstatic faces and wide smiles begin to fade, and they sit in silence as the screen fades to black.
—
At the end of the movie, what’s been achieved? The short answer: nothing. Benjamin has his fling with Mrs Robinson and gets together with Elaine, but so what? He still doesn’t know what he’s doing with his life, and neither does Elaine. He can’t just go back to the life he had before, certainly not without all the judgment. The ending exemplifies this; the adrenaline of his impulsive decisions has faded, and reality is starting to sink in.
This movie fits into the “coming-of-age” trope very well - movies about finding one’s place and purpose in life. But what makes this movie so gut-wrenching and real is the fact that nothing has changed. At the end of the movie, Benjamin is just as lost as the beginning.
Well, it do feel like that sometimes.
In many ways I have been blessed - I’ve known what I’ve wanted to do for a long time, and the way things are going, I don’t have to worry about getting a job, and it looks as if I’m set for life.
I mean, I’m not denying that I am. I am so lucky and I will never forget that. But there’s still all the inbetween, the next few years of learning, that is all so uncertain. A completely new environment with completely new faces - there is some element of fear in this, so many “What if?”s, so many concerns.
Ultimately, there’s a fear that I will end up in the same situation as Benjamin (of course, only some parts of it) - what will I do then?
Still, and I must repeat again - I am very lucky. The past few years have instilled me with (somewhat insane) levels of confidence (yes, I wasn’t always like that), both in my current abilities and my future. I can’t be sure for certain if I’ll fall into a Benjamin-esque situation, but there’s a good amount of confidence in me that I’ll be able to push through it.
Some years ago, if I was shown this movie, I probably wouldn’t have understood it and if I did, I definitely wouldn’t have the same feeling towards it as I do now. There were points in time where I was more “lost” - I didn’t know how to handle issues and I didn’t know what I was doing. What changed? A snap back to reality, a strengthened resolve, newfound motivation. It took me many years to reach this point, really, and I’m so glad to be here.