The Graduate (1967)

Directed by Mike Nichols
Written by Calder Willingham and Buck Henry, based on the novel by Charles Webb
Starring Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katharine Ross and William Daniels

A disillusioned college graduate finds himself torn between his older lover and her daughter.

There is no denying that this comedy from 1967 is a classic. It is filled with memorable scenes, perfect performances and top-notch writing. This film has withstood the test of time and still finds a sense or relevance among younger audiences.

But good God, is it annoying. Filled with stupid, annoying and irrational characters who do stupid, annoying and irrational things. No character has any redeeming qualities and even as a twenty-five year old, I find everyone's actions childish and literally the worst possible thing they can do in the situations they find themselves in.

Starring a definitely-not-twenty-year-old Dustin Hoffman and a not-much-older-than-Dustin-Hoffman Anne Bancroft, I found their characters rather unbelievable. Their affair, however was more believable than the love between Hoffman and the daughter of his lover. 

More time was spent on establishing the affair than was spent on the entire part of the film in which he "fell in love" with the daughter, let alone the 30 seconds it took for him to fall in love with her. Which made the entire plot eye-roll worthy.

All that being said, you're probably expecting my to give this an extremely low rating. Despite all of it's flaws, and there were many, I found that the performances overshadowed them. Yes, they were all stupid, annoying and irrational. But they all had a humor to them that made the experience enjoyable. It's easy to see why this film is a classic.

My Rating: 6/10

Love is Strange (2014)

Directed by Ira Sachs
Written by Ira Sachs and Mauricio Zacharias
Starring John Lithgow, Alfred Molina, Marisa Tomei and Darren E. Burrows

Ben and George get married after years of being together without the law being on their side. After their honeymoon, George is fired from his teaching post, forcing them to stay with friends separately while they sell their place and look for cheaper housing-- a situation that weighs heavily on all involved.

An eloquent study of how love can conquer the most arduous situations, this film has the added element of a homosexual couple and their tribulations soon after the ban on same-sex marriage in New York was lifted. Not only is it a film about romantic love, but also familiar love.

John Lithgow and Alfred Molina are great as the couple who experiences all of these trials. Their chemistry together seems genuine as if they had been together for all of the decades their characters claim.

Set to the music of classical composers, this film seemed as if it were orchestrated specifically to Chopin and Beethoven in a sort of mash-up symphony. The music gave an added sense of peace and at times, sadness that classical composers have been known for. It is rare that the music influence stands out so much in a positive and non-distracting way. It truly added to the film New York setting.

I wouldn't call this movie amazing, but it was certainly touching and entertaining. Film's such as this aren't trying to change your life are change the way you see movies. They just try to tell a nice, clean story that you can enjoy. And this movie succeeded at that.

My Rating: 6.5/10