American Graffiti

1973 "Where were you in '62?"
7.4| 1h50m| PG| en| More Info
Released: 11 August 1973 Released
Producted By: Lucasfilm Ltd.
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Info

A couple of high school graduates spend one final night cruising the strip with their buddies before they go off to college.

Genre

Drama, Comedy

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American Graffiti (1973) is now streaming with subscription on Max

Director

George Lucas

Production Companies

Lucasfilm Ltd.

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American Graffiti Audience Reviews

VeteranLight I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.
BoardChiri Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay
KnotStronger This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.
Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.
skyfall-33402 My third favorite movie ( 2: Titanic, 1: Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End ). Even though this movie only takes place in one night, so much happens in it. Imagine this: it's 1963, and it's the last day of high school. Kids are driving up and down the street in their Mustangs and T-Birds, playing their Elvis and Bill Haley. I saw this movie about a month ago ( I'm 12 ) and I saw about 10 minutes of it, until I had to go to bed, because I started it to late. I watched it the next night and I loved it.
RMS1949 The film itself was pretty bland. While it was suppose to be just a slice of life about teenagers getting ready to go off into their college days, the actors all seemed more like people who were in their mid 20's.. And when I check the birth days of many of the stars in it, I was right,, many in their mid 20's ,, hell, Harrison Ford was 30 when this was made. Just seemed weird. Best thing about it was the cars and of course the music. A potpourri of great late 50's and early 60's hits. Maybe it was novel at the time it came out, today it just looks cheesy, miscast and worst of all, boring..
Wuchak Released in 1973 and directed/written by George Lucas, "American Graffiti" is a teen drama taking place in a Bay area town in California one night at the end of the summer of '62. The youths drive the strip, seek romance, drink, cause innocent havoc and reflect on their futures. As the inspiration of the popular Happy Days, I was expecting a great movie, but it's not. Sure, the old cars and late 50s/early 60's rock 'n' roll are great, as are some of the cast, but the story & writing are seriously dull. "Dazed and Confused" (1993) had a similar theme, but the events in that film take place in 1976 and the movie's all-around superior (it's incredible how American culture radically changed in a mere 14 years). Ron Howard is perfect as the protagonist for this sort of story, as shown in Happy Days, but I didn't care a wit about his character's relationship with his girlfriend (Cindy Williams) and whether or not they stayed together as Steve (Howard) readied himself for college. Nor did I buy the idea that Debbie would be into Terry at the end (Candy Clark & Charles Martin Smith) or that Curt (Richard Dreyfuss) would fall hopelessly in love with some older blond he meets for 5 seconds on the strip. Paul Le Mat plays the best character, the hot roddin' John, and I liked how his relationship with the pubescent Carol (Mackenzie Phillips) evolves over the course of the evening but their bickering is annoying. Interestingly, a young Harrison Ford appears as John's racing rival and there's an effective race sequence at the end. Bo Hopkins is notable as the leader of the Pharaohs gang where Manuel Padilla Jr & Beau Gentry play subordinates; they, more or less, take Curt hostage. Unfortunately, there are only a couple of genuinely alluring females and they're decidedly side characters (e.g. Jana Bellan). So I enjoyed the setting, the cars, the music and some of the cast, but virtually none of the subplots interested me. The writing's unengaging. Combine virtually any four Happy Days episodes and they're vastly more entertaining story-wise than this ridiculously overrated flick. Despite my criticisms, the film was a hit and Lucas used his newfound clout to forge 1977's blockbuster "Star Wars." The movie runs 112 minutes and was shot in the bay area of Northern California (Petaluma, San Rafael, Mill Valley, Pinole, Concord, Larkspur, SF and Berkeley). ADDITIONAL WRITERS: Gloria Katz & Willard Huyck. Wolfman Jack is heard on the radio throughout and even appears at the end. GRADE: C
joel14481-2 The real star of this movie are the cars. It's like watching the Woodward Dream Cruise in Oakland County, Michigan. The hot rods are great but so are the stock 50's and 60's from Ford, Chrysler and General Motors. When I was in high school, we would cruise Woodward every Friday and Saturday night. Going from drive-in to drive-in looking at the cars and the girls. i was a passenger until my older brother went in the army in 1961 end entrusted his 1955 Ford Victoria to me. It looked much better than it ran. Stock engine meant that I never raced. But I was able to peel out with the best of them. Watching this film really gives me vivid memories of my own teenage years.We were in such a hurry to grow up but didn't really want to accept any responsibility. It was all about having fun. The costar is the music. It's a really great selection of early rock and roll. Great cars and great music. What more could you ask for?