Graduation Afternoon

The story tells of a young woman enjoying her wealthy boyfriend's high school graduation party at his suburban Connecticut home when events take an unexpected turn.

PopMatters compared the ending of the story to Two Suns in the Sunset by Pink Floyd. M. John Harrison at The Guardian called it an "elegaic and old-fashioned end-of-the-world piece." Matt Thorne at The Independent said the horror in Graduation Afternoon "is not just a premonition of something that could happen, but something that would happen."

The story was adapted by Marie D. Jones into a short film in 2019 as part of Dollar Baby and released on January 10, 2021.

 

 

From left to right: Jade Kaiser and George Jac in Graduation Afternoon (2021).

Cast

• George Jac
• Jade Kaiser
• Diane Sargent
• Noor Razooky
• Brian Patrick Butler

Production

Jones chose to adapt the story because it was one of King's shorter Dollar Baby choices. It was shot over three weekends and Rob Padilla Jr. directed the film.

Critical response

Steve Hutchinson at Tales of Terror said it was a quality film that is relatable because the filmmakers connected Donald Trump. Adam Groves at The Bedlam Files said "the film isn’t very invigorating."

• Short fiction by Stephen King