Film Harold and Maude

[silvia saint]

wondering if anybody can help me with this one, i'd be surprised and grateful if anybody can.

saw this as a child, probably around late 80's early 90's, though i'm sure the film was made in the very late 70's-mid 80's judging by the look.

the best i can go on is this memory...

at the start of the film a young boy taunts his mother (probably for attention) by pretending to have committed suicide. his does this in a few short scenes featuring various methods of suicide. in one scene his mother walks in on him hanging by a noose. she is totally unconcerned and says something probably along the lines of "dinner is at 7" or similar before walking away, obvious to the fact he is faking it. in another i believe he's slashed his wrists and is lying either in a bath or pool of blood.

the film probably sux, but i'm dying to know what film it is and have had no luck using the usual methods.

thanks for looking.

 

[alasdairm]

harold and maude

it definitely doesn't suck, imho.

alasdair

 

[DarthMom]

movie is a classic good oldie to add to anyones netflix, if haven't seen

 

[Banquo]

that definitely sounds like a dark comedy. faking suicide for yer mum? jeez.

changing title of thread, so people can post their thoughts on this film...

 

[silvia saint]

thanks alasdairm. i didn't expect it to be such a well known feature.

 

[stinkfoot]

awesome movie.

it also features several songs by cat stevens.

 

[FreshFr0mDet0x]

Amazing that you put this post up so recently. Just a coincidence really, but it seems amazing. I saw this movie again for the first time, not having seen it since I was like, in 3rd or 4th grade. This was two weeks ago maybe. Couldn't sleep any more after 3 or 4 hours, so I got up and turned on the tv. I'll be damned if the second half of Harold and Maude wasn't on HBO or some shit. I cried for like half an hour while watching it. Don't expect it to do this the first time you see it, I was just in a fragile state and it brought up a lot of excellent stuff for me.

One of my favorite movies of all time, especailly now. I just picked up a copy at Amoeba and have watched it a few times since. The Cat Stevens music is amazing; I didn't even know I liked Cat Stevens.

 

[Ghettotastic_bong]

I just saw this film for the first time a couple of months ago as part of a humanties class.

Certaintly this film has it's downfalls, it preaches an unrelenting message of 60's free spirits and antiestablismentarinism to a slightly repetitive sense, but has more than enough charm and ambition to keep it afloat. The unexpected twist near the end of the film fits wonderfully, capping off a flawed, but intriguing movie.

I give it 3/4 stars. It's easy to find faults within this film, but it has enough enegry and purpose to make it more than worth the viewing time.

 

[Sideways_Falling]

Film: Harold and Maude

Poll added.

 

[Benefit]

This is the kind of film you always hear people reference, but probably haven't seen. Which is too bad, because it is fantastic. The acting, directing, soundtrack and writing are all top notch. It's a very dry kind of humor and you might not like it if you have a sophomoric sense of humor. The characters are classic. Disturbing, weird and offbeat, but intensely interesting and the film is beautifully directed. There are several scenes that are amazingly beautiful and well filmed.

Cat Stevens drops a pretty cool soundtrack as well.

 

[wizekrak]

Do they go to White Castle?

 

[L O V E L I F E]

I kinda liked it, and I can see why some people loved it, but, for me, it didn't quite live up to the hype.

For my money, When Harry Met Sally is the far superior film among the two whose titles keep getting mixed up in my head.

 

[RareForm]

watched this movie recently. i liked it alot actually.

 

[@lterEgo]

this one is part of the dvd collection. i like films that are sort of twisted and a bit off, but at the same time totally charming. harold and maude definitely falls into that category for me.

 

[hydroazuanacaine]

other than who wrote it, directed it, plays in it--also when and where--i try to go into movies knowing as little as possible. but because of its title, cover art, and how often it is referenced and alluded to, i couldn't help discovering that it is about the relationship between a boy and an old lady. this knowledge allowed me to put it off for years.

it is available on instant in HD. netflix has been telling me i would eat it up. so last night i gave in. it was a huge let down. the old lady's character is an annoying cliche. she is not pretty. the movie takes great pride in being quirky. because it has nothing else. other than a positive message about life--so boring and simple it's summed up in the lyrics to a single cat steven's song that won't stop playing.

the kid's tone and facial expressions are the only real positives in the film. funny he grew up to be the bond company stooge in The Life Aquatic. i doubt a coincidence. although i think this movie is no good, it must be one of wes anderson's influences.

 

[sjdleahahiliem]

I saw this film a couple of times. But when I watched it a couple of weeks ago, i recognized for the first time that [spoil]maude has an tattoo which indicates that she was in Ausschwitz. This explains her lifestyle. Did you recognize the tattoo when you watched the film for the first time?[/spoil]

 

[hydroazuanacaine]

though this an old film and most people reading through this thread will have either seen it, will never see it, or shouldn't live so on the edge if they plan on seeing it, that might be worthy of spoil tags. even if it's not, this would be a great time to tell you about them given the likelihood you will fall in love with bluelight and more specifically F&T, becoming an awesome regular. if you put something between the brackets [spoil][/spoil], that text is blacked out and only read-able if highlighted. making it easy to hide any spoilers.

so it could be like...

I saw this film a couple of times. But when I watched it a couple of weeks ago, i recognized that for the first time that [spoil]maude has an tattoo which indicates that she was in Ausschwitz. This explains her lifestyle. Did you recognize the tattoo when you watched the film for the first time?[/spoil]

i sure noticed. the camera makes a quick but very direct point of it. that is another compliment i could squeeze out for the film. it's an attempt to drop a little weight on things without interrupting the otherwise light story. i'm not complimenting the twist--or whatever you'd call it--just its presentation.

 

[Swings]

Awesome Awesome AWESOME film. I went to an arts high school and I started in a program that immersed the student in all forms of art, so they could make a more informed decision the next year as to which arts they planned to study. It included a film class with this teacher who was just starting out but was SO amazing. He introduced me to most of the films that got me interested in the field, including Harold and Maude.

It's truly the most beautiful love story in film.

 

[Swings]

though this an old film and most people reading through this thread will have either seen it, will never see it, or shouldn't live so on the edge if they plan on seeing it, that might be worthy of spoil tags.

I'm still mad the Guidelines post spoiled Soylent Green for me.