Editing The Graduate (section)

===Critical response===
''The Graduate'' was met with generally positive reviews from critics upon its release. A.D. Murphy of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' and [[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' praised the film, with Murphy describing it as a "delightful satirical comedy drama",<ref name="variety">{{cite news |title=Film Reviews—The Graduate |url=https://variety.com/1967/film/reviews/the-graduate-1117791319/ |first=A.D. |last=Murphy |work=Variety |date=December 18, 1967 |access-date=March 15, 2018 |archive-date=March 27, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180327122153/http://variety.com/1967/film/reviews/the-graduate-1117791319/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and Ebert claiming it was the "funniest American comedy of the year".<ref name="ebert">{{cite news |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-graduate-1967 |title=The Graduate |first=Roger |last=Ebert |author-link=Roger Ebert |work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |date=December 26, 1967 |access-date=2011-04-13 |archive-date=July 22, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722165911/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F19671226%2FREVIEWS%2F712260301%2F1023 |url-status=live }}</ref>

However, ''[[Life (magazine)|Life]]'' critic [[Richard Schickel]] felt the film "starts out to satirize the alienated spirit of modern youth, does so with uncommon brilliance for its first half, but ends up selling out to the very spirit its creators intended to make fun of... It's a shame – they were halfway to something wonderful when they skidded on a patch of greasy kid stuff."<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Schickel |first=Richard |author-link=Richard Schickel |date=January 19, 1968 |volume=64 |number=3 |issn=0024-3019 |title=Fine Debut for a Square Anti-Hero |magazine=[[Life (magazine)|Life]] |page=16 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XUoEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA16 |access-date=July 22, 2024}}</ref>

[[Pauline Kael]] wondered, "How could you convince them [younger viewers] that a movie that sells innocence is a very commercial piece of work when they're so clearly in the market to buy innocence?"{{sfn|Gray|2017|pp=166-167}}

Critics continue to praise the film, if not always with the same ardor. For the film's thirtieth anniversary reissue, Ebert retracted some of his previous praise for it, noting that he felt its time had passed, and that he now had more sympathy for Mrs. Robinson than for Benjamin (whom he considered "an insufferable creep"), viewing one's sympathy for Mrs. Robinson and disdainful attitude toward Ben as a function of aging and wisdom.<ref name="ebert30">{{cite news |title=The Graduate |url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19970328/REVIEWS/703280304/1023 |first=Roger |last=Ebert |author-link=Roger Ebert |work=Chicago Sun-Times |date=March 28, 1997 |access-date=2011-04-13 |archive-date=July 22, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722180403/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F19970328%2FREVIEWS%2F703280304%2F1023 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

He, along with [[Gene Siskel]], gave the film a positive, if unenthusiastic review on the television program ''[[At the Movies with Ebert & Roeper|Siskel & Ebert]]''.<ref name="siskel">{{cite episode |series=Siskel & Ebert at the Movies |url=https://siskelebert.org/?p=5629 |airdate=March 22, 1997 |season=11 |number=28 |publisher=Siskel&Ebert.org |title=LiarLiar / Crash / Selena / The Graduate (1997) |minutes=3:40 |transcript=TV.com: Siskel & Ebert at the Movies Season 11 Episode 28 |transcript-url=http://www.tv.com/shows/siskel-and-ebert-at-the-movies/week-of-march-22-1997-1226197/ |access-date=2014-03-03 |archive-date=October 14, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141014092326/http://siskelandebert.org/video/2XNKBRRX1HXR/LiarLiar--Crash--Selena--The-Graduate-1997 |url-status=live }}</ref> Furthermore, the film's rating in the [[American Film Institute]] list of the greatest American films fell from seventh in 1997 to 17th in the 2007 update. Lang Thompson, however, argued that "it really hasn't dated much".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/121604%7C88172/The-Graduate.html|title=The Graduate|last=Thompson|first=Lang|website=[[Turner Classic Movies|Turner Classic Movies Database]]|access-date=February 16, 2017|archive-date=February 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170216214233/http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/121604%7C88172/The-Graduate.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[Review aggregator]] [[Rotten Tomatoes]] gives the film an approval rating of 86% based on 87 reviews, with an average rating of 8.90/10. The site's consensus reads: "The music, the performances, the precision in capturing the post-college malaise – ''The Graduate''{{'s}} coming-of-age story is indeed one for the ages."<ref>{{cite web |date=April 16, 2019 |title=The Graduate |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/graduate/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190430032646/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/graduate |archive-date=April 30, 2019 |access-date=June 13, 2023 |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |publisher=[[Fandango Media]]}}</ref> On the similar website, [[Metacritic]], the film holds a score of 83 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".<ref>{{cite web |title=The Graduate |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-graduate |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181005153149/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-graduate |archive-date=October 5, 2018 |access-date=April 28, 2020 |website=[[Metacritic]] |publisher=[[Fandom, Inc.]]}}</ref>