Editing Techniques In The Graduate

The Graduate (dir. Mike Nichols, 1967) is a film about a young man named Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) who is just beginning to face the harsh reality of life after graduation. Ben gets involved in an outlandish situation as he falls in love with Elaine Robinson (Katharine Ross), the daughter of a married Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft) whom of which Ben is having an affair with. The montage sequence “Drifting” captures Benjamin’s uncertainty for the future, as well as his discontent with his current lifestyle. The use of the elliptical editing devices such as dissolving, and impossible match on action calls attention to this idea of temporal ellipsis exemplified throughout the montage. Through these devices the spectator is able to comprise

Shots 1 through 7 make use of this elliptical editing device as each shot switches between Ben and the swaying water in the pool. Dissolving in this scene is able to show various different positions Ben orients his body in while laying, and functions as a stressor to the idea of this “everyday” activity that Ben seems to undergo post-graduation. This seemingly “schedule-oriented” activity that Ben continuously engages in is shown in a span of less than 2 minutes, and alludes to the concept of temporal ellipsis as the scene shows different shots of Ben drifting in the pool. The dissolve between the water and Ben is significant because the water makes more movement than Ben and is presented as its own entity while Ben’s only movement throughout shots 1 through 7 is the lifting of his beer can. Ben is uncertain of his future and his insecurity causes him to continuously spend his time doing nothing but drift in the pool and get tan. Dissolving in this sense imposes upon the spectator with the belief that time is being omitted in a short time span in order to create this idea that Ben is being moved by different forces rather than though his own free will. The disconnection between Ben’s mind and body in terms of movement relates to his discontent with his current state of life and his uncertainty of the