JUXTAPOSED CINEMA: NEEDLE IN THE GRADUATE

Twilight Time Blu Ray

A little of what we call a PHOTOBREAK from the routine of reviews, interviews and essays, here are two pictures, below this writeup, one from the famous cult film, THE GRADUATE, the other from the not so famous but pretty well known, in more obscure cult circles, THE PANIC IN NEEDLE PARK...

Both have several things in common. For starters, two short, swarthy, energetic and iconic character-actors who quickly became leading men got their start with each project: DUSTIN HOFFMAN as THE GRADUATE, who, at the very end, sitting in the back of a bus after winning over his woman the hard way by, with the help of Paul Simon's acoustic guitar, driving across California to crash a wedding and... well, you know the scene. Meanwhile, the end of PANIC IN NEEDLE PARK is far more ambiguous and, being about two junkies as opposed to high class college students, downright depressing... But not really. Because no matter what Kitty Winn did to make Al Pacino angry – which shouldn't be spoiled here or in the upcoming review – was surely something pretty low... But like Dustin and Katharine, both are heading towards an unseen, unknown future and yet, these futures are obviously shared by each couple, together, for better (GRADUATE) or most likely worse (PARK). And last and certainly not least, both couples wind up staring off in opposite directions, right at the last moment, and yet are completely connected... This must have been homage by NEEDLE director Jerry Schatzberg to Mike Nichols' iconic GRADUATE ending or else just a wonderful coincidence. Either way, there it is!

Katharine Ross and Dustin Hoffman at the end of THE GRADUATE Director: Mike Nichols

Kitty Winn and a Hoffman-looking Al Pacino at the end of PANIC IN NEEDLE PARK Director: Jerry Schatzberg