The success of "Star Wars" ruined George Lucas as a filmmaker. Exhibit A would be his excellent "American Graffiti". This is only movie that George Lucas was part of that's actually about people. There's no razzle-dazzle in this movie. It's a beautifully acted movie. It's filled with characters we really care about. I've seen "American Graffiti" a bunch of times. It actually gets better every time I see it. It is a true classic. Honorable mention: Wolfman Jack.
American Graffiti
1973
Action / Comedy / Drama
American Graffiti
1973
Action / Comedy / Drama
Plot summary
It's the proverbial end of the summer 1962 in a small Northern California town. It's the evening before best friends and recent high school graduates, Curt Henderson and Steve Bolander, are scheduled to leave town to head to college back east. Curt, who received a lucrative local scholarship, is seen as the promise that their class holds. But Curt is having second thoughts about leaving what Steve basically sees as their dead end town. Curt's beliefs are strengthened when he spots an unknown beautiful blonde in a T-bird who mouths the words "I love you" to him. As Curt tries to find that blonde while trying to get away from a local gang who have him somewhat hostage, Curt may come to a decision about his immediate future. Outgoing class president Steve, on the other hand, wants to leave, despite meaning that he will leave girlfriend, head cheerleader and Curt's sister, Laurie Henderson, behind. Steve and Laurie spend the evening "negotiating" the state of their relationship. Meanwhile, two of their friends cruise around town for the evening. Steve has left his car to meek and mild-mannered Terry "Toad" Fields to look after during his absence. The wheels give Toad a new sense of confidence, which he uses to try and impress Debbie Dunham, a more experienced girl generally out of his league. And John Milner, who is seen as the king of the street race in his souped-up yellow deuce coupe, tries to get rid of precocious pre-teen, Carol Morrison, who has somehow become his passenger for the evening, while dealing with the challenge of bold out-of-towner, Bob Falfa.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
Director
Top cast
Harrison Ford as Bob Falfa
Ron Howard as Steve
Richard Dreyfuss as Curt
Kathleen Quinlan as Peg
Tech specs
720p.WEB 1080p.WEB 995.6 MB
1280*544
English 2.0
NR
Movie Reviews
Reviewed by
Lucas' first classic
Reviewed by
The right film at the right time.
Whether you love this movie or not, you have to admire this movie for two reasons. First, its return on the dollar was among the best ever for any film. While the budget was a very modest $777,777.111 (no kidding),it returned $115,000,000 in the United States alone! No wonder this film made George Lucas famous. Second, it was very innovative. While I was not a huge fan of the film's style, it was unique and sure had an impact on the world as well as future films. No one had made a film like this before--chock full of one song after another blaring across the soundtrack and its odd semi-structureless plot was also quite unique.
The film concerns a bunch of young adults just hanging out and cruising. There really isn't a lot more to it than that. Sure, their stories all reveal a bit about them through the course of the film, but most of the characters have no great depth. It's more like you are a voyeur watching some likable and not especially likable kids doing...well...nothing. Now if you grew up in the early 60s and remember all this, then it's a great stroll down memory lane. If you didn't, I think the movie will be more of a tough sell, as the nostalgia angle is non-existent. As for me, I wasn't even born until 1964, so the nostalgia aspect was less--but I loved the music and great cars. My daughter, while less impressed about EVERYTHING did grudgingly say that the music was great. She also said that she pretty much ignored the plot and just listened to the songs! And, perhaps, this is pretty typical of a person from her generation. As for me, the film was mildly interesting and I respect it--though I did not love it. This isn't really meant as a criticism--just a statement about how this film appealed to this 47 year-old guy. For the right audience, it's the perfect film. Otherwise, you might feels it's all a bit overrated.
Aside from the nostalgia for the early 60s, the movie also is quite interesting when seen today because so many future stars and super-stars are in it--mostly when they were young unknowns. Ron Howard (a child star but not all that popular yet as an adult),Cindy Williams, Harrison Ford, Richard Dreyfus, Charles Martin Smith, Mackenzie Phillips and Suzanne Somers all appear in the film.
Reviewed by
Portrayal of a great era
American Graffiti is the second film from George Lucas, made after his quirky sci-fi effort THX 1138 but before he gave up crafting real characters in favour of larger-than-life comic book fantasy entertainment. It's a paeon to a long-forgotten world that was the 1950s, and features as its cast a bunch of high school students celebrating graduation with all of the angst that comes with it.
Films like this tend to be pretty easy to like, because the topics are universal and the situations are easy to identify with. Some of the themes covered here include machismo, gang culture, romance, nostalgia, and the ever-difficult transition from childhood to adulthood. American Graffiti isn't exactly a world-changing film but I found it likable enough, and the cast (including Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Charles Martin Smith, and Harrison Ford in early roles) are very good.
One of the things I liked most about American Graffiti is the soundtrack. It's much better, say, than the original music in GREASE; I love 1950s film and many classics are featured here. Occasionally (and annoyingly) the song gets cut off halfway through, but nonetheless the soundtrack helps to make this film both likable and fun.