Nyan G
Harold and Maude is a very strange yet profound film that focuses on the bond between the death/suicide obsessed Harold and 79-year-old upbeat Maude. Harold and Maude uses the constant suicide attempts by Harold as comedic moments to reflect his search for meaning and connection. The film’s use of dark humor juxtaposed with unexpected tender moments gives it a charm that was very unexpected. All the while making viewers uncomfortable but also somehow intrigued.
One of the most popular takes about the film is how well it balances morbid and lighthearted elements. I agree, as somehow we're able to laugh at Harold’s dramatic attempts at death while also sympathizing with his clear loneliness and isolation. Harold’s obsession with death is a clearly a response to his detached, synthetic family life. Through Maude, who approaches every moment in life with a joyous passion, he learns to see the true value of life. She brings out a positive side of Harold that would otherwise be locked away.
I found Harold and Maude to be a very original and moving film. I understand why it has a cult classic status and I think it resonates so much because it shows us how to find humor in the darkness of life while also embracing the often strange nature of reality. Harold and Maude is both an depiction of the absurdity of existence and also a reminder to appreciate it.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
11/15/24
Full Review
Sophia Jean M
Harold & Maude was very interesting and entertaining to watch! I was interested in what kind of move Harold would do next. It kind of felt like he was pranking the viewer because there were moments when he looked directly at the camera after doing one of his pranks. I thought the movie was pretty touching too, especially that one scene when Harold and Maude were sitting together on the beach with the coin he showed Maude. There were so many romantic scenes, I loved it. Before I watched the movie, my professor mentioned that the movie was about their forbidden, socially unacceptable relationship with someone old, Maude, and young, Harold. The pairing of an older woman and a younger boy is very uncommon, so it seems a little weird. However, it's better than a pairing with an older man and a younger girl because Harold and Maude’s relationship was surrounded on romantic love and not lust. Their relationship is interesting because Harold was someone who hated life, and jokes about death, but has so much time and Maude is someone who loves life, enjoys life, but has little time left. I thought that contrast was so good. I can see why or how this movie would have a cult following because of the history and the multiple topics it brings up. Also Harold and Maude themselves are very interesting characters too. I see people liking Harold’s dark humor and his pranks and I can see people liking Maude’s lifestyle, philosophies, hobbies, style, etc.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
11/08/24
Full Review
Ndia W
I would like to start the review off with the fact that I fairly enjoyed this film. It was full of a dark sense of humor or I like to think so but it also had light-hearted moments which made the film a little soft at times. I would like to call it a rom-com with a dark twist but I would also like to point out that it’s just one of those things that weren’t supposed to work but it did, which is the best kind of film in my opinion. It was the kind of cult film that I had to watch twice because the first time it felt kind of slow and boring but the second time I watched it , I came to see the sense of humor in it . I felt the scene of Harold hanging himself just like his mother did was a lot for me because I've never experienced a film like that before so I thought it was very original. It is a cult film that definitely left me thinking and if I'm being completely honest I still don’t fully understand the plot. Maybe Harold is fiction of Maude's imagination to teach her some kind of life lesson or maybe they are learning something from each other to go on in life. I think after two watches I wouldn't watch it anymore but it is a very nice cult film that i did fairly enjoy.
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
10/08/24
Full Review
Emily A
This is the 2nd “cultural” film that I have seen and I have to say. I really liked this film so much better than the other one. It was very refreshing and funny. There were so many moments that I laughed so hard because the film was just funny. But overall, the movie wasn’t just funny. I enjoyed it because it had a deeper meaning to it. The main character Harold was a young man, who wasn’t really doing much in his life. It showed that his mother was trying to make him into a person what she wants and not what Harold wants. Throughout the film, Harold “kills himself” because that’s what he just does and he even goes to funerals because they think they are fun. During one of the funerals, he meets Maude and Maude is an older woman that just does what she wants. After that, Maude shows him the wonders of doing whatever you want in the world. It’s about being free and not following the rules or anybody’s opinions. Harold begins to be his true self though Maude. We can see this change within Harold with the way he acts and even through his clothing. In the beginning, he would only wear dark clothes, but in the end, he was wearing more colorful clothes. Signifying the change. Watching this movie made me realize that I too should enjoy my life the way I want to and through somebody else. Sure, the movie does have its weird moments, but overall I really enjoyed it. I would actually recommend this movie to anyone. I feel like it would be a nice movie to enjoy. Not too confusing or bad, it’s an overall good move.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
10/01/24
Full Review
Maximiliano A
Good ole , Harold and Maude. A movie I thought at first was initially very strange and boring , yet as more runtime was playing , began to have more fascinations toward the movie.
The plot is very fascinating and rather bizarre as it showcases Harold , a young and confused boy depressingly living through life with ways of committing suicides towards himself in strange ways. Which his movie has no reaction to upon viewing it , leading to have us audience believe she is desensitized towards Harold's strange roleplays.
As the movie goes more on we can see that the mother loves Harold as they have a big house and she gifts him with things such as a new car and trying to find him a wife and takes him to therapy. Yet her doing is more of what she thinks is best for him instead of what he believes is best for him which is something that I believe a lot of the audience can relate too when it comes to parenting. Some people never have a say in what they desire or want and are always outed out or considered weird and the parents never do things in the favor of their child. This is something we notice around before half way into the film.
What makes the movie really interesting is Harold doesen't have friends yet he befriends an old lady named Maude which he finds quite fascinating out of all people due to her out of ordinary beliefs and ways of going about situations, The audience will be stunned to see the way she avoids police , how she drives , and how she lures Harold into becoming her friend. But what may be the most stunning is how Harold and Maudes' friendship slowly becomes a bond of love and romance where they want to end up being married. Now some say it is an attempt of seducing or manipulation as Maude was able to persuade Harold into loving her but I see it as different.
Harold was a very troubled young boy. His mom would set him on dates with women who all found him odd and even tried sending him to the army since his uncle was a well respected figure and even he found Harold to odd to draft . Yet the only person who never found Harold weird and "off" was Maude. She listened to every one of Harold's concerns , interests , and issues.
This movie was made in 1971 and still today in 2024 as an audience we can say the world has not changed in terms of society, There will always be people who are outed from the rest and considered "strange" due to their interests yet they just need their voice heard and to feel understood. Maude was the only person that truly understood Harold which led to their bond being very strong. It truly is beautiful to see how one humans actions and change the entire narrative of another persons life which is what I believe should happen more often. The movie might have brought the narrative upon in a controversial way which was a young boy and an old lady falling in love but I believe it is a way of the director saying we are all humans and we are capable of doing extraordinary things towards each other regardless of background.
For this reason I would highly recommend watching Harold and Maude to visualize how society is no different from the movies perspective onto todays current society in 2024.
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
10/01/24
Full Review
Laurence Andre A
Harold and the Maude is a funny and boring movie to watch at the same time. Though, it may be disturbing to some people for a young man dating a 80 year old woman, it still have some motive into it like it Maude is teaching Harold how to appreciate life since his pranks on his family is about him killing himself in which he required therapy for it to help him a bit, though none of the therapy doesn't help him at all except for Maude who is doing a great job at helping Harold out of his suicide thoughts. I don't think I would suggest people watch this movie as it will bore them over time but it's not a bad film to watch. Though, the irony of this film is about Maude teaching Harold a lesson or two about living his life, There are some easter eggs that can be seen into this movie like the director of the film can be seen during the Maude and Harold hanging out in the carnival and the scene where Harold is being introduced to his first girlfriend, though after scaring her thinking that he burn himself and ran away from the house, Harold can be seen breaking the fourth wall by looking directly at the camera. And though, the sad part of this movie is when Harold asked Maude to marry him until she revealed to him that she swallowed a pill that made her pass away which made Harold extremely worried and rushed her to the hospital where she later died. In the last scene, Harold can be seen driving his car off the cliff to commit suicide until suddenly, the car fell off the cliffs and Harold was standing on top the cliff playing the banjo the Maude asked him to do as a good habit of life.
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
09/27/24
Full Review
Read all reviews
>
