Stranger Than Fiction

I was doing some work earlier, and was flipping thru the channels when I came across this 2006 film. I watched the last 80% of it, and it was quite charming.



Not great cinema, and the ending was predictable- that somehow the main character would not die, but it was done with far more verve and affection, and far less pretension than the films written by Charlie 'One Note' Kaufman.

The Graduate.

Yesterday Dan and I watched The Graduate for the first time. It's one of those films I've known about for a while, obviously, but never gotten around to watching. I remember an old coworker being surprised when I said I hadn't seen it, since she knew I was into "older movies" and I guess the reason I'd not seen it is because I 1) never had the chance and 2) it seemed just like a "better made Hollywood film," or in other words, something that would be pretty good but nothing great.

Well, The Graduate is a very good film, and there are some excellent technical shots. I told Dan how I thought it was a lot more innovative than Breathless as a film.



Anyway, I looked online and found this funny recut trailer, where it is presented as a horror film. Very well done, I have to say.



And for those Anne Bancroft fans, there happens to be a Charlie Rose interview posted in it's entirety.



There are a number of scenes where the Simon & Garfunkel music blends together very nicely, and just to give a comparison, it did not seem forced like the way it did in Love Story.


Overall, it's funnier than I thought it would be, and Hoffman gives a great performance. Anne Bancroft isn't bad either. I wish more of Hollywood would make films like this.