A glimpse of Mike Nichols' directing techniques in American New Cinema ``The Graduate''

Hoffman's ad-lib made Nichols laugh out loud.

Nichols chose ``The Graduate'' as his second directorial film. Nichols received the script, adapted by actors and screenwriters Buck Henry and Calder Willingham from the original story by American author Charles Webb, and first had the actors memorize their lines perfectly. All scenes were carefully rehearsed. Katharine Ross, one of the cast members, said that she had mastered the lines enough to travel to local performances. Nichols has a directing style that is unique to him as a stage performer.

“The Graduate” (c) Getty Images

However, the rehearsal produces some great scenes. For example, there's the scene where Benjamin (Ben), played by Dustin Hoffman, and Mrs. Robinson, played by Anne Bancroft, meet for the first time in a hotel. At rehearsal, Hoffman suddenly grabs Bancroft by the chest, freezing her. This is because he remembered that when he was a student, he would often grab girls' breasts from above his jacket and play with them. Nichols burst out laughing when he saw this, and Hoffman burst out laughing as well. Hoffman, who can't stop laughing, gets so frustrated that he tries to stop laughing by banging his head against the wall over and over again. His outlandish behavior added humor to the secret meeting scene, and as a result, his idea was adopted in the actual production.

Technical direction that expresses the main character's feelings