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Harold And Maude
1971
In the long ago days before video when access to anything but first-run Hollywood movies was limited to repertory houses and college film societies, Hal Ashby's HAROLD AND MAUDE, while not what one would call an underground film, achieved cult status, becoming one of the most popular American films of its time. It is, .. Read more
| Starring | Bud Cort, Ruth Gordon, Cyril Cusack, Vivian Pickles |
|---|---|
| Director | Hal Ashby |
| Genres | Comedy |
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Harold And Maude
In the long ago days before video when access to anything but first-run Hollywood movies was limited to repertory houses and college film societies, Hal Ashby's HAROLD AND MAUDE, while not what one would call an underground film, achieved cult status, becoming one of the most popular American films of its time. It is, interestingly, a very simple story. He's shy and morose; she's spunky and full of life. The film is a cliched love story about how opposites attract, except that he's 19 and she's 79. Harold, played with deadpan humor by Bud Cort, is under extreme pressure from his overbearing mother, Mrs. Chasen (Vivian Pickles), in a performance that is a sheer delight, to enter the dating world in hopes of marriage, but he would rather spend his time going to funerals, which is where he meets Maude (Ruth Gordon). She feels he needs to come out of his shell and enjoy life, so she includes him in hers, which is one long, unending series of lunatic adventures, ranging from saving trees to grand theft auto. Their love affair celebrated the spirit of an experimental generation guided by the mantra "If it feels good, do it." The soundtrack, with songs and lyrics by Cat Stevens (which Pauline Kael called "mush minded"), provides an effective thematic bridge as Harold crosses from extended adolescence to manhood.
| Starring | Bud Cort, Ruth Gordon, Cyril Cusack, Vivian Pickles, Ellen Geer |
|---|---|
| Director | Hal Ashby |
| Studio | PARAMOUNT HOME ENTERTAINMENT |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 27 mins Watch now: 1 hr 30 mins |
| Certificate | DVD: , Watch Online: |
| Genres | Comedy |
| Language | English |
| Dubbed | French, German, Italian, Spanish |
| Hearing-impaired | English |
| Subtitles | Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish |
| Released | DVD: 13 May 2002 Watch now: 05 Nov 2009 Production year: 1971 |
| Watch now | FREE |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (3)
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Call it bad taste, but rarely has such a strange love affair been presented so charmingly as the one here between morbid young Harold (Bud Cort) and 79-year-old concentration camp survivor Maude (Ruth Gordon). Depressed by life, and rejected by his wealthy mother (Vivian Pickles), the death-fascinated Harold drives a hearse to funerals, meets the skittish Maude, and falls in love. A cult classic, the film started life as a graduate thesis by Colin Higgins, whose landlady helped him to set it up for direction by Hal Ashby. The performances are a delightful bonus in a movie that, for all its eccentricities, likes people.
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Often hilarious black comedy for those who can stand it; the epitome of bad taste, splashed around with wit and vigour, it became a minor cult.
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Most helpful member's review
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30 out of 30 people found this review helpful
Older and better
A little dated now but Hal Ashby’s comedy about a maudlin young man and his relationship with a young-at-heart octagenarian is short, sweet and leaves you feeling a better person for having watched it.
Maude is irreverent, spontaneous and beautiful and Ruth Gordon does her full justice. In a lesser directors lap this story would come across as absurd and ridiculous. Hal Ashby, as ever, is simple and sly in his humour and is able to say a lot with very little. Some of the set pieces seem a little jaded after thirty years but others are hilarious, not least Maude’s encounter with the police. Cat Stevens provides a jaunty soundtrack. At an hour and twenty five minutes you could get two of these into a Lord of the Rings, about £100,000,000 in change and learn a lot more about life, war and love. -
Most recent members' review
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4 out of 6 people found this review helpful
Customer Review
sorry, i don't think this film is as good as everyone claims, i found it boring and uninsightful
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News and features
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Charlie Bartlett
- 12 May 2008
What's a preppie to do when he's been expelled so many times his mom decides he's going to have to cut it in the public system? Charlie (Anton Yelchin) doesn't have an axe to grind, but he's clueless about his privileged background (he even wears a blazer to school) and genuinely shocked to find his head used as a toilet plunger. Despite his checkered record Charlie is no fool. Taking stock of his assets, he realizes that he can play his multiple therapists off against each other to ascertain... Read more
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