Hey, so I haven't seen all of the guy's films, maybe someone can help me out with an idea I had.

It seems to me that Mike Nichols includes the following theme in every one of his films that I've seen: A character (or characters) has/have a past in which they've done something wrong. Suddenly, they are confronted with a situation in which that past comes back to haunt them. Often there's also some sort of redemption tied into this.

These are the ones I've seen-

The Graduate- Probably the most prominent in this film. Ben casually has an affair with Mrs. Robinson. Suddenly he becomes seriously interested in Elaine, only to realize that his past with Mrs. Robinson may jeopardize his relationship with Elaine, which it does. Ben is later redeemed by Elaine.

Postcards From the Edge- Other obvious one. Suzanne's drug addiction frequently comes back to haunt her with film directors can't afford to insure her. She finally makes amends with her mother and is redeemed.

The Birdcage- Haven't seen this one in a while, but you've got the son who has the gay father. He tries to hide this to appear normal, but he eventually learns to embrace it.

Primary Colors- Stanton has a history of sleeping around. This obviously poses a threat. He is redeemed when he decides not to go public with the other senator's drug problem.

Closer- Not a big fan of this one, so I don't have too many details. But I think there was an affair in someone's past, and a guy with a weird chatroom fetish. Heh. Maybe someone can help me here.

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf- George and Martha invent a fake past that involves their son. After mentioning it to the other two, they keep making the lie bigger as a way to deal with their problems.

I own Catch-22 (and am a massive fan of the book), and I don't think this one fits the theme.

For those who have seen his other stuff, what do you think?

Also, writing this message, I've realized that almost all of his stuff is based on a book (Catch-22, Graduate, Primary Colors, Postcards) and others are based on stage plays (Virginia Woolf, Birdcage, Closer, W;t). Even Charlie Wilson was based on a book. Are all of his films adapted from something else? And if so, I suppose this theme would be inherent in the original material. So maybe he just picks works with this theme? I don't know.

Thanks,
timenotspace
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVurjcrxWcA