Reading American Graffiti

More than mere nostalgia, George Lucas' 1973 film belongs to a series of films that respond to the tumultuous political and social landscape of 1970s America, writes Nicholas Godfrey. Additional keywords: film as text, senior secondary, George Lucas, American cinema, New Hollywood, Vietnam War, Easy Rider, Dennis Hopper, The Last Picture Show, Peter Bogdanovich, road movie, teen movie, 1950s, 1950s America, THX1138, Thomas Elsaesser, American culture