::ASIDE:: Please know what I mean by a cult classic. I do not mean a piece of culture that involves a fanatic following that know the work backwards and forwards and sidewards and skywards. I mean a film that, when addressed in a public situation, is not well-known enough for Jon Smith behind you to join in the conversation because they saw it once way back when. From this definition, the films The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and Donnie Darko are cult classics, to which I say 'No, sir!' While I do acknowledge the fact that they are textbook examples of the 'cult' variety, they are not what I refer to when I say 'cult film'. They have embedded themselves so deeply into the mainstream culture that every Tom, Dick, and Harry can have an opinion on them.
While yes, Harold and Maude is known by a few people who saw it once, if it were happened upon in regular conversation Mr. Asshole Passerby would have a slim chance of knowing what you were talking about. There would be an even smaller chance that they would have enjoyed it on that viewing. I myself had never even heard about it until about four years ago when my aunt insisted this was a film for me. She was right.
The short synopsis of the film is: A rich, teenage boy named Harold is plagued by ennui and only finds enjoyment from attending funerals of strangers and faking his own death for his mother who, understandably, doesn't find it entertaining in the least. The other half of the titular duo is Maude, a 59-year old woman who lives life to its fullest as a free spirit, doing as she pleases and who also takes enjoyment in attending the funerals of absolute strangers. The two meet, and Maude takes Harold under her wing to teach him that life should, every day, be lived to its fullest. In the process, the two fall in love.
Yes.
A 16-year old boy falls in love with a 59-year old woman. Let that sink in for a second. And in the process, H&M makes itself one of the creepiest films that purposefully sets itself apart from others by completely disregarding modern film tropes. I wish not to spoil the ending, but it is extraordinarily powerful and perfectly fitting.
So why even discuss this film, when it makes a point to give you both the heebies and the jeebies? It is not merely because it is obscure or makes us laugh in the face of Pointless Life holding hands with Riotous Humour. But because it has such a great message of living life to its fullest. Many people find solace in mulling about humdrum lives and not taking chances, and it is the actions of these people the film is opposed to. H&M does what every good piece of art should do: make Man step out of his life and examine it himself so that he can point out the trivialities in it, and then act upon them.
I start with this film because it helps in my cause. I choose with my actions to make people step back and criticize life for what it really is. By deviating from the norm (going to funerals, falling in love with someone four times your age) it makes one understand what it is to be human and how one can be able to become a derivation of that: human, but a new kind of human.
*Not all film reviews and analysis will be like this, but this is an excellent example of it.
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