Harold and Maude
Amazon.co.uk Review
Black comedies don’t come much blacker than cult favourite, Harold and Maude (1972), and they don’t come much funnier either. It seems that director Hal Ashby was the perfect choice to mine a load of eccentricity from the original Colin Higgins script, about the unlikely romance between a death-obsessed 19-year-old named Harold (Bud Cort) and a life-loving 79-year-old widow named Maude (Ruth Gordon). They meet at a funeral, and Maude finds something oddly appealing about Harold, urging him to “reach out” and grab life by the lapels as opposed to dwelling morbidly on mortality. Harold grows fond of the old gal–she’s a lot more fun than the girls his mother desperately tries to match him up with- -and together they make Harold and Maude one of the sweetest and most unconventional love stories ever made. Much of the early humour arises from Harold’ s outrageous suicide fantasies, played out as a kind of twisted parlour game to mortify his mother, who has grown immune to her strange son’s antics. Gradually, however, the film’s clever humour shifts to a brighter outlook and finally arrives at a point where Harold is truly happy to be alive. Featuring soundtrack songs by Cat Stevens, this comedy certainly won’t appeal to all tastes (it was a box-office flop when first released), but if you’re on its quirky wavelength, it might just strike you as one of the funniest films you’ve ever seen. –Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com
Briefly, Harold and Maude is an early seventies film waking up from the hangover at the end of the sixties. It’s a highly creative and well crafted account of a bizarre set of relationships between Harold (Bud Cort), death (Goths will like this bit!), cars (E-Type Jaguar hearse), his rich and societal mother and a fabulously delinquent senior citizen Maude (Ruth Gordon).
You’ll either find it sick or inciteful, adolescent or poignant. It’s one of my favourite films of all time and has the added benefit a lovable Cat Stevens sound track.
Watch this film and start to understand the diversity and creativity that underpinned the seventies arts scene.
Jab
Rating: 5 / 5
I really love this film. Its in my top 5 all-time favourite films. I will still be watching in in years to come….its that good. And think about it, how many films nowadays are there you could watch even twice? Maybe the Cat Stevens music has a lot to do with it. Its just so uplifting, positive and very, very funny.
Rating: 5 / 5
this is a must watch film.
beautifully shot, beautifully acted and best of all will leave you feeling happy to be alive and excited by the possibilities of tomorrow.
Rating: 5 / 5
Harold is a very confused young man, who attends funerals in his spare time. Maud is a very old lady, who has such a joy for life, you immediately love her. When they meet at a funeral the story is set.
Maud teaches Harold how to enjoy life and that it is there to be lived. She pulls some wonderful stunts and it leaves you wanting to go out and do what she is doing now before you get to her age. It also makes you realise that life is there for the taking and to be grabbed by the throat and lived to the full.
Although it should be a sad ending, it gives you hope and makes you wonder at life and love.
It is a wonderful film, full of fun, laughter and joy and a must for anyone who loves to see life from a different point of view.
It also has a wonderful sound track by Cat Stevens, which fits is ideally with the mood of the film.
Things to watch out for are at the very start of the film when Harolds mother is trying to pair him off and his numerous (non serious) attempts at suicide.
A lovely, warm film suitable for all.
Rating: 5 / 5
I saw this film by mistake a few years ago and it completely changed how I see things. It was made for a different generation than mine (I’m 21), but I think the world would be a better place if everyone my age saw it. It’s the only film I could watch an infinate number of times, in fact I always put it on when I’m not feeling my best – and even when I am! Hal Ashby is a god for making this. It’s more than a film, it’s a lesson in life.
Rating: 5 / 5