Unconventional Love

Harold and Maude, by Hal Ashby, gave me an alternative insight into the lifestyle of young American privilege generation of the 70's. This black film reflects the detachment of the American elite from the reality of war, and portraits this type of life as plain and without meaning. Although the film does not approach this issues in a very direct way from the start, the romantic interaction between Maude, a 79 year old women, and Harold, a privileged young adult, sheds light on issues of identity, life purpose, and moral contradictions.

Harold, a very young adult from the American elite does not find purpose and meaning in his life. As a form to express his frustrations and lack of meaningful interaction between his family, he constantly fakes his suicide, attends to funerals, and lives a very solitary life at his mother's house. Even though his mother seems to care about him, she fails to see that what Harold really needs is someone's affection to share the simple things in life. His mother tries to help Harold by buying him a car and introducing him to different women, but Harold finds materialistic approaches meaningless.

Maude, an old lady who seems to enjoy life more than anyone Harold has ever met attracts his attention and eventually takes his heart. Maude is the representation of all the "beautiful" sensory aspects in life that Harold has not have the chance to experience. The 79 year old lady plays music, helps the environment, poses nude for sculptures and believes in piece. Her qualities, as well as the meaningful interactions they have by unconventional places bring them closer, and help Harold find meaning and beauty in this world that he wasn't able to see before.

In addition to the unconventional plot and characters of this black film, the type of shooting, mise-en-sène, sets, and music had very interesting connections with the reality that was experience in the United States of the time. The mansion where Harold lives with his mother is displayed in a very plain manner by the way the shots are taken, and the music works as a commentary of the life for Harold and part of the American population at the time. Songs by Cat Stevens, such as "If You Want to Sing It Out, Sing iIt Out", and "Don't Be Shy," express some of the existential crisis experienced by the meaningless young population evolved in an unnecessary war.

The sets where the interaction between Maude and Harold take place are unconventional for any type of dating, but reflect the destruction of the environment, those who were lost in the war and the alternative scape to nature and art. The love affair between Maude and Harold represents the relationship between two generations affected by war. Those who experience World War II and those who led the US into an unprovoked intervention in Vietnam. Although, Harold's future is not very clear by the end of the film, we can see that life with Maude has completely change his life. Now he finds the meaning for his life in art and nature.