Getting Straight
Harry Bailey has returned from Vietnam and returns to college to earn his masters degree so he can teach English. He is considered a hero among the radical student body, but still sees the absurdity on both sides of the fence. He contends with the reactionary administration and the impetuous, often futile objectives of the restless students. He acts as a mediator between the two feuding bodies. On top of everything else, his girlfriend Jan wants to marry him and live a life in the suburbs. He is cornered and finally lets loose at his own masters degree dissertation meeting, just as the latest protest heats up.
The film earned $13.3M at the global box office.
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Getting Straight (1970) showcases meticulously timed narrative architecture, characteristic of Richard Rush's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 11-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 2 hours and 4 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 6.7, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Harry Bailey returns to graduate school after years of activism, caught between his radical past and conformist academic future. He's exhausted, cynical, trying to play the system to get his teaching credential.. Notably, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 15 minutes when Harry learns his thesis defense and oral exams are approaching, and the faculty committee is skeptical of his radical background. His academic survival is threatened—he must prove himself acceptable to the establishment.. At 12% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
At 62 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. The analysis reveals that this crucial beat A false victory: Harry thinks he's figured out how to navigate both worlds, but a confrontation reveals the impossibility of his position. Either campus violence escalates or a key relationship fractures, showing his compromise strategy is failing., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 93 minutes (75% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Harry's oral examination becomes a disaster. The faculty committee's questions about F. Scott Fitzgerald reveal the absurdity and rigidity of the system. Harry breaks down, losing control, his careful compromise strategy completely shattered., shows the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Synthesis at 99 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. Harry confronts the faculty, students, and Jan with newfound clarity. He either rejects the system entirely or forces it to accept him on his terms. Final confrontations resolve his relationships and his place in the chaotic world of 1970., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Getting Straight's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 11 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs structural analysis methodology used to understand storytelling architecture. By mapping Getting Straight against these established plot points, we can identify how Richard Rush utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Getting Straight within the comedy genre.
Richard Rush's Structural Approach
Among the 2 Richard Rush films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.8, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Getting Straight takes a more unconventional approach compared to the director's typical style. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Richard Rush filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional comedy films include The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, The Bad Guys and Lake Placid. For more Richard Rush analyses, see Color of Night.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Harry Bailey returns to graduate school after years of activism, caught between his radical past and conformist academic future. He's exhausted, cynical, trying to play the system to get his teaching credential.
Theme
A professor or fellow student challenges Harry about authenticity versus compromise: "What are you really fighting for?" The question of whether one can work within the system without being corrupted by it.
Worldbuilding
Establishment of the university environment in 1970: campus protests, student unrest, conservative faculty, Harry's relationship with Jan, his cramped apartment, his cynical attitude toward both radicals and establishment.
Disruption
Harry learns his thesis defense and oral exams are approaching, and the faculty committee is skeptical of his radical background. His academic survival is threatened—he must prove himself acceptable to the establishment.
Resistance
Harry debates whether to play the game or stay true to his principles. Jan and others offer advice. He tries to navigate student demands for his support in protests while preparing for exams. He resists full commitment either way.
Act II
ConfrontationPremise
Harry navigates the absurdities of academic life while campus chaos escalates. He tries to maintain relationships with both radical students and conservative professors. Comic and dramatic exploration of the generation gap and institutional hypocrisy.
Midpoint
A false victory: Harry thinks he's figured out how to navigate both worlds, but a confrontation reveals the impossibility of his position. Either campus violence escalates or a key relationship fractures, showing his compromise strategy is failing.
Opposition
Pressure mounts from all sides. Students demand Harry join their cause, faculty becomes more suspicious, his relationship with Jan deteriorates. The oral exam approaches and Harry realizes he can't satisfy everyone. His attempts to compromise alienate both camps.
Collapse
Harry's oral examination becomes a disaster. The faculty committee's questions about F. Scott Fitzgerald reveal the absurdity and rigidity of the system. Harry breaks down, losing control, his careful compromise strategy completely shattered.
Crisis
Harry faces the consequences of his breakdown. He processes what just happened, confronting the reality that the system cannot be navigated through compromise—it demands total capitulation. His dark night of reckoning with authenticity.
Act III
ResolutionSynthesis
Harry confronts the faculty, students, and Jan with newfound clarity. He either rejects the system entirely or forces it to accept him on his terms. Final confrontations resolve his relationships and his place in the chaotic world of 1970.