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LowComDom Performances Presents
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Film Review - American Graffiti
Here's a milestone in the Modern American Cinema. American Graffiti was a small film that changed the movie industry. A brilliant screenplay by George Lucas, Gloria Katz and Willard Huyck describes the lifestyle of teenagers in a small California town in 1962. This is Lucas' autobiography of that era: every night out cruising the boulevard, meeting girls, and hoping to get lucky. Lucas was so many of these characters: the hot rodder, the kid who managed to get into college, the other kid who was afraid to leave home, and the strange kid they called Toad.
The film was shot in sequence from Page 1 to the end, to ensure that as the night the film documents progresses, the actors would look more and more tired. To a certain extent what little there is of a plot also becomes tired. Clearly, plot is not the point of the film. We are watching a revisionist documentary of a lifestyle now dead.
The cast has become a who's who of big names in Hollywood. Here they all are early in their careers in this small budget film.
This isn't going to be for everyone, but it's a treat for those who can watch a slower film.
Film Facts
Directed by George Lucas
Released in 1973
MPAA Rating: PG
Reviewed by Mongo