[jyl]

My 16 y/o daughter and I just watched "The Graduate". Most of us have seen that 45 y/o movie many times, and no longer have any reaction to it. She's been brought up on "modern" movies, and her reactions were interesting.

The deeply shadowed, almost film noir shots - that's something she was not used to, and impressed by. I hardly see those shots in modern movies.

Ben is a character with no concrete reason for his actions, beyond being an empty, lost soul. Today a character like that wouldn't work, his aimlessness would be distracting to modern audiences, unless he were made a parody of something.

The end, what end, "that's the end?" In 2012, you're thinking this must be a set-up for a sequel, no movie can actually not have a conclusive wrapped up ending. But back then, as I recall, this sort of non-ending was pretty common.

Oh, I'd forgotten just how creepy Anne Bancroft is in the movie. Some of her shots are so scary. And Katharine Ross - well, let's just say no more.

Are there older movies that impressed your kids, even without special effects or Johnny Depp?

I made my kids watch "Breaking Away". They were moaning bored for awhile, then they started to get into it, by the end of the movie they were jumping up and down screaming.