A young man obsessed with death meets an old woman enjoying life in this classic black comedy. This is one film you need to see before you die!
First time I saw this was in school. And by that I mean during actual school hours. One of our teachers showed it to us. Immediately after the opening scene I knew this would be great. Now I admit that back than I liked it as a dark comedy but this is much more.
Live life to the fullest and don´t let it be dictated by others. While not always easy to do one should at least try.
Well love doesn't have any boundaries, specially when it comes to Harold, and Maude, love is a funny thing. This definitely makes the list of the stranger films i've ever seen, but definitely worth your time, it kept me hanging from the start to the finish, and some great chemistry with these two actors, very deep film 7/10
I’m so upset that I had my first viewing of this a few days ago. This is a hilarious dark comedy that oozes cult classic. The leads Ruth Gordon and Bud Cort are great. It because ridiculous with the stage death scene but in all the best ways. The relationship is believable, genuine, loving and heartbreaking. And that ending is a shock to the system leaving a lot in the air. This is a wonderful film that needs more love. I can see this slowly becoming one of my favorite films of all time.
Offbeat adventures and social awakenings with a terminally anxious introvert and the assertive, spontaneous older eccentric who cracks his shell and opens his eyes. Trapped in a stifling social circle and thoroughly smothered by his mother, nineteen-year-old Harold’s sole outlet is his obsession with death. It seems that this particular avenue is only available because the subject makes everyone too uncomfortable to engage, but the kid relishes that opportunity all the same. Whilst he drives around town in a hearse and repeatedly fakes his own death, Maude notes the boy’s frequent appearance in private funeral services and takes him under her wing. She enjoys death’s strange atmosphere, too, but also savors all of life’s more peculiar varieties and is quite happy to share/rediscover them with an inexperienced youth.
There’s a bright sweetness to this relationship, one that’s validated by the performance (and relative obscurity) of the two leads. Their connection is so potent because it’s so unusual, a matched pair of wayward souls that spans several generations, but we linger in the celebration for too long. Harold experiences personal growth, embraces the delights of discovery, finds a kindred spirit, but then falls into another type of complacency. The film seems ready to move on to its heavier messages long before they're actually covered, as if it’s afraid of letting go. Which, in my opinion, runs counter to its message. Enjoyable as a sanguine change of pace, particularly for the era, and for the well-matched Cat Stevens soundtrack (really excellent musical selections here), but it doesn’t exactly stick the landing.
A young man obsessed with enacting suicides and an older woman whose always lived carefree meet and instantly connect. There's something about the atmosphere of the movie that is very comforting to those that would generally feel outcast. The main characters have no one else in the world, but they have found each other.
Every scene is either provocative or filled with the best of Cat Stevens. Seriously, it's crazy that half of Cat Stevens best songs from this period are in this movie. He even wrote two songs just for the movie and shows up in a scene. Highly recommended if you like Cat Stevens even a little bit.
There was some funny moments but for the most part I thought this was just ok. The characters were a little too weird. The music was good.
Overrated for me. I liked the Cat Stevens soundtrack but it was maybe overused. The characters were more goofy than clever. Some of the dialogue was good. How many times at the start did we need to see Harold do a trick to understand he tricks people? Maude seemed nuts. It seemed like it was trying to be profound a lot of the time but it was contrived. I'm sure they drove past a grave yard to Cat Stevens more than once. It's not even funny either. Weird that people want to be like Maude when they're older... really? I understand the message it's trying to give out but it's lost in the unbelievable characters. It seemed to drag it's plots out and lack ideas.
Review by Mad MattyBlockedParent2018-12-11T22:44:05Z
A truly remarkable film. There's nothing wrong with predictable, but it's refreshing to see something that isn't. The two main characters in this film are both rather eccentric. Harold is obsessed with death - He keeps pretending to kill himself, and he keeps attending random funerals. At one of his many funeral visits, he meets a 79 year old woman who is also eccentric. She attends funerals regularly to make herself feel alive. Despite such an age difference, a friendship develops into a romantic relationship. For 1971, this was probably outrageous, but it's actually told in a beautiful and realistic way.
Despite the morbid theme, there are many comical moments, and it isn't all that upsetting overall. Be aware of the morbid theme though, as it may not always be appropriate viewing for anyone who's just buried a loved one. But don't let it put you off watching it. It's one to definitely watch when you feel able to do so.
As a Chaplin fan, I had to admire the final shot, which was very Chaplin-esq (whether intentionally or not.) Towards the end of a few Chaplin films, he walked away sadly, with his back to the camera to show that he was quite upset, but then he would always kick up his heels and continue walking but in a more cheerful way, as if to say: "tomorrow's another day."
In this film, Harold does the same thing at the end. He walks away from the camera sadly, but then kicks up his heels and quickly becomes happy again. It's as if his character has learnt to be positive and not let negativity get him down. We can learn a lot from Harold and Maude.