In Mike Nichols, H. Wayne Schuth traces the career of the world-renowned director through his sudden and spectacular rise to fame and his subsequent disappointments.  Schuth notes the unusual nature of Nichols’ career, in that he was given the opportunity to direct a high-profile film without first having to put in any long, tedious years gaining experience in the film industry.  With this initial film, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Nichols was able to establish himself as a major film director.  His next film, The Graduate, produced just one year later, made him a celebrity.  While Schuth concentrates on the unique and extraordinary talent that Nichols possesses as a director, he also does not hesitate to focus on the films that Nichols has directed since his first two hits.  While most authors tend to ignore or downplay the disappointing performances of films such as Catch-22, Carnal Knowledge, and The Fortune, Schuth addresses these films head-on and explores why they were not well-received by audiences.  Schuth looks at the poor performances of these three films in the context of Nichols’ celebrated work on Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and The Graduate.  Schuth not only considers the films themselves, but also what Nichols has said about his intentions with each of the films, to comprehensively compare and contrast the work that Nichols did on the different films.

            The Graduate is arguably Nichols’ most successful film, so Schuth spends a great deal of time analyzing Nichols’ interpretation of the story and how he translated this interpretation cinematically.  Schuth focuses on three elements—color, music, and visual motif—to examine Nichols’ intentions.  These three elements are used both overtly and implicitly to symbolize different meanings and to convey or provoke various sentiments.  Schuth presents many innovative and perceptive interpretations regarding the themes and relationships present in the film.  For example, he perceives that the “idea that sex and love are separated, with sex destructive and love constructive” appears in the film.  Schuth offers an in-depth analysis of the minute details of the film as well as the larger thematic aspects that bind the film as a whole.