MovieChat Forums > The Graduate (1967) Discussion > Interesting/fun fact about the very end....

Interesting/fun fact about the very end. (Spoiler)


First of all, let's start out by saying that this movie is amazing.

I purchased the Criterion Collection blu-ray and I highly suggest every hardcore fan to do the same.
It is FULL of fantastic commentary and interviews.

One interview is with the editors wife. And she said that her husband, Sam O'Steen (the editor), was an extra on the bus scene at the very end. He convinced the director to direct the scene and yell "action" and "cut". Well, he had forgotten to yell "cut" and that's why the shot of Ben and Elaine is so lengthy, showing us their faces going from excited to nervous. Kind of like, "what do we do now?"

So because he forgot to yell "cut", it made their expressions absolutely perfect and added such a beautiful ending to this movie that can be interpreted realistically.

However, after hearing this awesome fact in the criterion collection, I went to the trivia here on imdb and saw this: "Mike Nichols often remarked about how Ben and Elaine in the final scene looked frightened and confused after their initial elation over escaping on the bus. Yet during an appearance on Inside the Actors Studio (1994), he said the looks on their faces were due to being nervous and scared after he shouted at them to laugh during the scene. He liked it so much, he decided to keep the cameras rolling and cut it into the final movie."

So now I'm a little pissed because I don't know what to believe. Haha

What do y'all think?


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Interesting.

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Whether or not the scene was intentional or how it came about, it does create and illustrate the Uncertainty that comes about when making a Relationship with someone.

We all should be Mature enough to understand this will take a lot of Compromise and a lot of Raw Affection and Respect to Hope to make it work.
But most of us in That Moment are in the Throes of Emotion, and think the next few minutes are a Rock Solid Indication of how the rest of our lives together will be.

Not sure I can laugh any harder right now, or shake my head much harder.

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