Movie Review: American Graffiti
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this movie holds up beautifully
for teens. Because it's set in the '60s, there is smoking and
loads of drinking. There's a fistfight, some off screen
gunshots, drag racing, and some language you might not want
your kids using at the dinner table. Teens challenge authority,
drink and drive, talk about sex, make out, and yes, there's the
odd shot of the naked backside.
Families who watch this video may want to discuss how older teens feel about leaving home, and moving away from everything they know. Which characters do you most identify with? Where do you expect to go after high school?
Common Sense Media Review
High school is over and Steven (Ron Howard) and Curt
(Richard Dreyfus) are leaving for college. Over the course of a
long last night, Steven and Laurie (Cindy Williams) resolve to
date others, while Curt chases a mysterious blonde woman
(Suzanne Sommers) in a T-bird. Meanwhile, Steven's friend Toad
takes Steven's car and romances the somewhat dim Debbie.
Another friend, John Milner, wants to drag race hot-shot Bob
(Harrison Ford). Unfortunately, Milner gets saddled with a
whiny 13-year-old for the evening.
Before the night is over, Curt escapes the clutches of a gang, destroys a cop car, and consults with Wolfman Jack. Toad's (borrowed) car is stolen and Milner narrowly defeats Bob, who crashes with Laurie in tow. Curt departs for college while Steven decides to stay with Laurie for one more year. With varying degrees of anticipation and fear, the teens leave high school behind.
The music! The clothes! The stars! The cars!! An unknown George Lucas, four years before he would make Star Wars , set a standard for teen movies.
American Graffiti reinvented the way Hollywood told stories. Instead of a straightforward plot with a traditional hero, Lucas's movie interweaves incidents in the lives of five main characters. While many directors have since borrowed Lucas's technique (most notably Robert Altman), it was television that directly copped the style. Kids raised on "Malcolm in the Middle" and "The O.C." will have no trouble following the multiple d storylines.
Like the characters themselves, America in 1962 was on the brink of enormous changes, and Lucas captures that momentous feeling tinged with uneasiness. Children may ask, "Was it really like that?" One twelve-year-old enjoyed the movie, but had lots of questions: "Who was Wolfman Jack?" and "Did kids really say stupid things like Neat?" The child laughed at exchanges that are supposed to be risky, but seem innocent by today's standards -- less offensive than what kids see in the eight o'clock family hour.
The cast is uniformly strong. Most of the young actors are famous now -- Ron Howard, Harrison Ford, Richard Dreyfus, and Suzanne Sommers. And the soundtrack, virtually a greatest hits collection from the era, includes recordings from such early rock legends as Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly and Fats Domino. The songs are beautifully woven into the restless teenage world.
This is a great movie to enjoy with your older children. For more contemporary coming-of-age stories, two of the best are Breaking Away and Say Anything . There's also an inferior sequel available: More American Graffiti.
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
