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Harold and Maude (1971)
Director: Hal Ashby
Writer: Colin Higgins
Cast: Ruth Gordon, Bud Cort, Vivian Pickles
Genre: Dark Comedy, Drama Romance
Review: I really wanted to like this movie, really I did! I thought it sounded fun and it's so highly rated. I thought it might be something I'd really like. I thought wrong. I mostly hated it. I'll explain...
No I didn't hate it for the obvious reason. I did not object to the story idea of an 80 year old woman having a romance with a 20 year old kid, (though he looks more like 14) I actually liked the story idea, it had a lot of potential.
I liked Ruth Gordon in this, she's always a favorite of mine. I liked the look of the film too: (the way it was filmed, the on location scenes, the editing...it was all well done.) I liked the actress who played the rich kid's mom, Vivian Pickles (cool name!). I thought she brought lots of juice to her role, ha.
Even the three girls who showed up for blind dates, were well cast and each actress made the most out of their limited screen time. I liked everyone except for the drip dry Bud Cort who plays the young Harold. Crap was he boring! Talk about no personality and zero screen presences. He played the role like a zombie, which made it hard for me to care about him at all.
I kept hoping he would wipe that vacant, dumb-ass look off his face and come out of his clam shell...but he never did. He was not up for the role.
Then I kept thinking how great this would've been if the movie had a spirited, impish actor with a dark side, say like Malcom McDowell. Malcom was a young actor at the time and had three years earlier made a film about another disfranchised, rebellious youth in the controversial movie, If....(1968)
Malcom McDowell would've been perfect for this. Hell even a more comic actor, say like Dustin Hofman could've made this film memorable. But as it is, I can't get behind the movie with such a dismally, boring lead actor.
As far as the message of the film goes, that life should be enjoyed to the fullest by being a free spirit, sure that's a great idea. But...Maude certainly disapproves that idea at the end of the film, doesn't she.
One interesting thing about this movie, it's a product of it's time and endorses the old hippy slogan 'if it feels good just do it'. Are Maude and Harold free spirits? No, they're both selfish, self centered people, who hurt people around them.
Harold and Maude (1971)
Writer: Colin Higgins
Cast: Ruth Gordon, Bud Cort, Vivian Pickles
Genre: Dark Comedy, Drama Romance
Review: I really wanted to like this movie, really I did! I thought it sounded fun and it's so highly rated. I thought it might be something I'd really like. I thought wrong. I mostly hated it. I'll explain...
No I didn't hate it for the obvious reason. I did not object to the story idea of an 80 year old woman having a romance with a 20 year old kid, (though he looks more like 14) I actually liked the story idea, it had a lot of potential.
I liked Ruth Gordon in this, she's always a favorite of mine. I liked the look of the film too: (the way it was filmed, the on location scenes, the editing...it was all well done.) I liked the actress who played the rich kid's mom, Vivian Pickles (cool name!). I thought she brought lots of juice to her role, ha.
Even the three girls who showed up for blind dates, were well cast and each actress made the most out of their limited screen time. I liked everyone except for the drip dry Bud Cort who plays the young Harold. Crap was he boring! Talk about no personality and zero screen presences. He played the role like a zombie, which made it hard for me to care about him at all.
I kept hoping he would wipe that vacant, dumb-ass look off his face and come out of his clam shell...but he never did. He was not up for the role.
Then I kept thinking how great this would've been if the movie had a spirited, impish actor with a dark side, say like Malcom McDowell. Malcom was a young actor at the time and had three years earlier made a film about another disfranchised, rebellious youth in the controversial movie, If....(1968)
Malcom McDowell would've been perfect for this. Hell even a more comic actor, say like Dustin Hofman could've made this film memorable. But as it is, I can't get behind the movie with such a dismally, boring lead actor.
As far as the message of the film goes, that life should be enjoyed to the fullest by being a free spirit, sure that's a great idea. But...Maude certainly disapproves that idea at the end of the film, doesn't she.
One interesting thing about this movie, it's a product of it's time and endorses the old hippy slogan 'if it feels good just do it'. Are Maude and Harold free spirits? No, they're both selfish, self centered people, who hurt people around them.