Harold and Maude
Harold and Maude

Harold and Maude

1971Movie92 minEnglish

A deadpan young man obsessed with death meets an eccentric septuagenarian who teaches him to live life to the fullest.

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Insights

IMDb7.8/10
Rotten Tomatoes80%
Metacritic72/100
Google Users93%
Director: Hal AshbyGenres: Black Comedy, Romance, Drama

Plot Summary

A deeply troubled young man, Harold Chasen, is obsessed with death and spends his time staging elaborate fake suicides. He meets and befriends the eccentric and life-affirming 79-year-old Maude Findlay. Despite their age difference, they form a profound connection, with Maude teaching Harold to embrace life's joys and live each day to the fullest.

Critical Reception

Initially met with mixed reviews and poor box office performance, 'Harold and Maude' has since become a cult classic, widely praised for its dark humor, unique perspective on life and death, and the unforgettable performances of its leads. It's now considered a landmark film of the 1970s counterculture.

What Reviewers Say

  • A darkly humorous and unconventional exploration of life and death.
  • Praised for its unique blend of satire, romance, and philosophical themes.
  • Ruth Gordon and Bud Cort deliver iconic performances that anchor the film's emotional core.

Google audience: Audiences adore the film's quirky charm, profound message about living life to the fullest, and the heartwarming, albeit unusual, friendship between Harold and Maude. Many appreciate its enduring message and memorable characters.

Fun Fact

The song 'If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out' was written by Cat Stevens specifically for the film and plays a significant role in Harold's character development and eventual embrace of life.

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My Review

TMDB Reviews

2 reviews
Filipe Manuel Neto

Filipe Manuel Ne...

**Knowing how to live or knowing how to die are virtues, difficult and debatable themes that a film almost never has the courage to address.** Harold is a young man, just arrived at adulthood, who has a morbid fascination with death: he ...
CinemaSerf

CinemaSerf

So poor little rich kid "Harold" (Bud Cort) really does like a bit of attention seeking - constantly vying for the recognition of his mother by faking every more outlandish suicide attempts. Things is, she (Vivian Pickles) is pretty impervi...