Harold and Maude

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Harold and Maude ★★★★ 1971 (PG)

Cult classic pairs Cort as a deadpan disillusioned 20-year-old obsessed with suicide (his staged attempts are a highlight) and a loveable Gordon as a funloving 80-year-old eccentric. They meet at a funeral (a mutual hobby), and develop a taboo romantic relationship, in which they explore the tired theme of the meaning of life with a fresh perspective. The script was originally the 20-minute long graduate thesis of UCLA student Higgins, who showed it to his landlady, wife of film producer Lewis. Features music by the preIslamic Cat Stevens. 92m/C VHS, DVD . Ruth Gordon, Bud Cort, Cyril Cusack, Vivian Pickles, Charles Tyner, Ellen Geer, Eric Christmas, G(eorge) Wood, Gordon Devol; D: Hal Ashby; W: Colin Higgins; C: John A. Alonzo; M: Cat Stevens. Natl. Film Reg. ‘97.