The Graduate (1967) - Film 2

New Wave techniques in The Graduate

• Diegetic sound.
• Diegetic sound in the airport fused with the song "The Sound of Silence", as Ben is in his 'own world' despite being in a public place.
• Soundtrack by Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel, music from the era.
• The song "Mrs Robinson" is played in numerous scenes featuring Mrs Robinson.
• Long tracking shot of Ben on a travelator, giving a sense of realism as the shot is so long.
• Handheld camera shots, giving a perspective view and sense of uneasiness when Ben is feeling uncomfortable at his party.
• Long cuts, with minimal editing at the party scene.
• Eye-level camera giving perspective.
• Natural lighting.
• Fast cuts of Mrs Robinson when she is trying to seduce Ben in the bedroom, showing how uncomfortable Ben is, also common of the New Wave.
• At the following scene in Ben's garden, the camera is showing a point of view, and the sound outside is muted with just diegetic sound of him breathing. Again, he is feeling alone and isolated, apart from the people around him.
• In the pool, the sound of the next scene can be heard in the current scene, overlapping and not in sync with each other.
• Mise-en-scene establishes the era e.g. buildings, clothing and music.
• Shallow depth of field when Ben is feeling nervous, concentrating his attention to one specific subject, the hotel receptionist.
• High angle, showing his loneliness and vulnerability in the hotel lobby.
• Shadow of the cameraman can be seen in a wooden door in the hotel lobby. Mistakes like this were left unedited and common of the New Wave.
• Lens flare.
• Jump cuts of different locations/memories, non-linear.
• Ben is shown in low key lighting when telling Mrs Robinson his feelings for her, showing his guilt and shame.
• Fade out edit to the next scene.
• The shot outside the strip club is a long shot from across the street, diegetic sound and a lot of people around them, using non-actors.
• Camera transition from out of focus to in focus in the same shot.
• Close-up of Mrs Robinson zooms out to a long shot then showing Mrs Robinson and Ben.
• Ben sitting alone at the fountain, then a straight cut to a crowd of people around him, with the camera in the same position.
• Fast zoom in on Elaine by the fountain.
• Framing the subjects.
• Candidly watching Elaine and other people walking, point of view.
• Busy streets with people doing day-to-day activities, using non-actors.
• Ben shown behind bars at the Zoo, suggesting he is trapped.
• When Ben is asking Elaine to marry him, a clock tower bell is heard diegetically, sounding like wedding bells.
• An instrumental of Simon & Garfunkel's "Mrs Robinson" can be heard, sounding like a more childish version of the original, as Elaine is the daughter of Mrs Robinson and younger.