54 Years Later, This Dark Comedy Still Breaks Hearts Today

Some movies can make you genuinely laugh. Others can make you think. But only a rare few manage to check off all the boxes. The one we're going to talk about today definitely checked off all of them and even more.

Initially, the movie didn't find wide audience recognition or critics' acclaim. We guess that the early '70s scene wasn't ready for this dark comedy and its bold topics.

Yet fortunately enough, here we are 54 years later, and the film finally got the praise it deserves. With 86% on Tomatometer and 93% on Popcornmeter, it makes us think that the most beautiful things in life take time to be understood and appreciated.

Harold and Maude (1971): A Story of Unexpected Love

We present to you Harold and Maude, a quirky coming-of age movie that will quickly make its way to your favorites list.

Directed by Hal Ashby, this dark comedy tells the story of Harold (Bud Cort), a young man obsessed with death, and his unlikely girlfriend, 79-year-old Maude (Ruth Gordon), who teaches him how to embrace life in all its weird glory.

Now you can probably understand why the audience of the '70s wasn't quite ready for the movie.

The unconventional premise is great, but there's so much more. Harold and Maude handles heavy themes with such a light touch. Death, love and the meaning of life are all wrapped up in this delightfully weird package that somehow works perfectly.

The chemistry between Cort and Gordon is absolutely magical. You'd think a romance between a death-obsessed 20-something and a free-spirited woman almost in her 80s would be awkward to watch. But these two make it feel natural. And also kind of beautiful.

Modern Audience Is Obsessed With Harold and Maude (& You’ll Be Too)

The fans are praising Harold and Maude every chance they get. Thus, Redditor TheBen15 wrote:

“I'm a big fan of this film as well. It's humour definitely clicked with me, and the Cat Stevens soundtrack is incredible. Pretty much I feel like what everyone else has said is exactly how I feel.”

Cat Stevens (now known as Yusuf Islam) absolutely knocked it out of the park. The music perfectly captures both the melancholy and the joy that make this movie so special.

Redditor awesomeness0232 touched a bit more on the cult aspect of the movie, saying:

“I like the movie a lot. I'm a big fan of dark comedy and I'm not sure there are many films that pull off the balance between humor and dark themes better than Harold and Maude. I'd say that the reason it isn't that widely discussed is because it's the very definition of a cult film. It may actually fit the definition of cult film more than many of the famous "cult" films that are widely discussed today.”

And we can confidently say that the movie's influence will grow more and more each year. If you haven't experienced Harold and Maude, we'll just pretend that we're not jealous and tell you that you can watch it on Fandango at Home, Amazon Video and Apple TV+.