American Graffiti (1973)

Director:

George Lucas

Writers:

George Lucas (written by) and
Gloria Katz (written by) ...

Release Date:

11 August 1973 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

...is back! [1978 Re-release]

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Night | College | Cruising | Car | High School

Awards:

Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 7 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Richard Dreyfuss	...	Curt Henderson
Ron Howard	...	Steve Bolander (as Ronny Howard)
Paul Le Mat	...	John Milner
Charles Martin Smith	...	Terry 'The Toad' Fields (as Charlie Martin Smith)
Cindy Williams	...	Laurie Henderson
Candy Clark	...	Debbie Dunham
Mackenzie Phillips	...	Carol
Wolfman Jack	...	XERB Disc Jockey
Bo Hopkins	...	Joe Young
Manuel Padilla Jr.	...	Carlos
Beau Gentry	...	Ants
Harrison Ford	...	Bob Falfa
Jim Bohan	...	Officer Holstein
Jana Bellan	...	Budda
Deby Celiz	...	Wendy

Also Known As:

Locura de verano (Uruguay) (Venezuela) [es]
American Graffiti (France) [fr]
American Graffiti (Spain) [es]
Amerykanskie graffiti (Poland) [pl]
Locura americana (Venezuela) [es]
Loucuras de Verão (Brazil) [pt]
Neanika synthimata (Greece) [el]
Nova Geração (Portugal) [pt]
Sidste nat med kliken (Denmark) [da]
Sista natten med gänget (Sweden) [sv]
Svängänget '62 (Finland: Swedish title) [sv]
Svengijengi -62 (Finland) [fi]

Runtime:

110 min | 112 min (re-release) (1978)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (original relase) | Dolby (re-release) (1975)

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | South Korea:15 | USA:PG (certificate #23582) | Brazil:14 | Australia:M | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Denmark:15 (video rating) | Finland:K-12 | Iceland:L | Norway:16 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | UK:AA (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Company:

Lucasfilm

Trivia:

Set designer Roger Christian claims he added the pair of dice hanging in the Millennium Falcon cockpit (briefly seen when Chebacca bumps his head on them as he first enters) because there were dice hanging in Harrison Ford's car in American Graffiti (1973). However, Ford's character had a skull hanging from his rear-view mirror. Ron Howard had the fluffy dice.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the latter half of the film, it's alternately sunrise/still night between shots.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Terry Fields: Hey, what do you say, Curt? Last night in town - you guys gonna have a little bash before you leave?
Steve Bolander: The Moose have been looking for you all day.
[hands check to Curt]
Steve Bolander: They got worried - thought you were trying to avoid them or something.
Terry Fields: What is it? What do ya got?
Curt Henderson: Oh, great.
Terry Fields: That's $2000 man! $2000!
Steve Bolander: Mr. Jennings gave it to me to give to you. He says he's sorry it's so late, but it's the first scholarship the Moose Lodge has given out. And he, uh, says they're all very proud of you back at the lodge.
Curt Henderson: Cute. Why don't you hold it for me for awhile?
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs: America's Funniest Movies (2000) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Fannie Mae

Seems almost an accidental classic

I don't know if George Lucas really knew what he had in this picture--surely the script seemed funny enough, and the thought of the cars and the period music was enticing--but did he really know these "unknown" actors who bring these characters to life? It seems almost a fluke, shot in 29 days and on a tight budget, but "American Graffiti" is a four-star classic. It is perhaps pure nostalgia, mixing pathos and humor, sadness and craziness, hope and reflection, in quiet little bursts of excitement. After cruising with Milner all night, teenage Carol hates to say goodbye but does, waving from her porch with the light on; Toad survives one bad accident after another, but his real moment is in hearing praise from his date (fantastic, husky-voiced Candy Clark, dolled up like a speeding Sandra Dee) just before she says good night; after chasing his dream date all night, Kurt (Richard Dreyfuss, green and anxious, and appealingly bemused) finally gets to talk to the stunning blonde wonder on the telephone, where she whispers a wrenching goodbye. The whole movie is steeped in reflection. It has great, great humor, yet it leaves one with a bittersweet melancholia. For yesterday is in the past, with our music, our memories, and our hesitant farewells.