Quartile rating: 8/10 · 1 rating
A deadpan young man obsessed with death meets an eccentric septuagenarian who teaches him to live life to the fullest.
Harold and Maude is a genuinely singular film — its darkly comic premise, the unlikely romance between a death-obsessed teenager and a life-embracing 79-year-old, and its irreverent tone make it one of a kind. Ruth Gordon's performance as Maude is a towering, luminous achievement, full of wit and warmth, and Bud Cort is perfectly matched in his deadpan despair. The plot is episodic and slight by design, which works thematically but limits dramatic momentum. Cinematography is competent and well-suited to the period but unremarkable. The ending is affecting and bittersweet but somewhat abrupt, leaving the emotional resolution a touch underdeveloped. Cat Stevens' score is woven beautifully into the fabric of the film. Overall a cult classic whose novelty and central performances remain its enduring strengths.