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Parents' Guide to

The Graduate

By David Gurney, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

Influential coming-of-age sex comedy has mature themes.

Movie PG 1967 105 minutes
The Graduate Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 16+

Based on 14 parent reviews

age 16+

Classical Film: Best Viewed Age 16+

The cinematography and acting are first class, as is the production quality (especially for the 1960's). There is a fine score (Simon and Garfunkel). This is a coming of age story with a finely layered plot and unconventional twists. There is a positive message about persistence and "finding oneself," but these themes are better reserved for older teens and young adults (16+). Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft are at their finest.
age 17+

Mature themes appropriate for college kids or adults

The age range is too low on this. It has very mature sexual content and situations that is not appropriate for minors. The storyline is targeted for college kids and adults reliving their college years, not for teens at all. There is lots of drinking, sexual content and situations that are morally ambiguous. I cannot believe it's on the list for Best Teen Movies.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (14 ):
Kids say (20 ):

This intriguing comedy was influential in that the plot seems to build toward an energetic climax, but the actual closing moments are listless, providing little closure. This way of leaving a film open-ended and unsettled, above all else, influenced many of the cinematic treasures of the late 1960s and early 1970s, a period that most look back on as golden days of motion-picture history.

Much has been said about the success and aftershocks of the release of The Graduate in 1967. Certainly its deadpan humor and the main character's palpable sense of unease resonated with audience members steeped in the rising counterculture movement. It stands as a document of an era. The lush soundtrack by Simon and Garfunkel underscores a pervasive melancholy while also giving certain quiet moments an astounding serenity -- a marriage of pop music and film that influenced many later films.

Movie Details

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