Harold and Maude
3/5/20261 hr 18 min
Paul and Amy pay tribute to the late Bud Cort by revisiting Hal Ashby’s 1971 cult classic that somehow never shows up on the big movie lists. They unpack the film’s unlikely origins as UCLA student Colin Higgins’ audacious script and trace its journey from disastrous reviews and a blink-and-you-miss-it release to becoming a full-blown counterculture cult classic.
You can join the Unspooled conversation on Paul’s Discord at https://discord.gg/ZwtygZGTa6
Follow Paul and Amy on Letterboxd for more of their movie hot takes! https://letterboxd.com/paulsc...
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsAmy Nicholson· Host0:00
The year is 1971 Tell me, Harold, what do you do for fun?
Speaker 20:06
What activity gives you a different sense of enjoyment from the others? Uh, what do you find fulfilling? What gives you that special satisfaction?
Bud Cort· Soundbite0:19
I go to funerals.
Amy Nicholson· Host0:23
The movie, Harold and Maude. [upbeat music] Hello, everyone, and welcome to Unspooled.
Paul Scheer· Host0:36
Unspooled. Yes, welcome to Unspooled. This is a podcast about good movies, critical hits, fan favorites, must-sees, and in case you missed 'ems.
Amy Nicholson· Host0:49
We have covered the AFI Top 100, and now we are checking off movies from three major lists: the Letterboxd Top 250 Films with the Most Fans, the IMDb Top 250, and The New York Times 1,000 Essential Films, none of whom have this movie we're doing on our list, which absolutely surprised me.
Paul Scheer· Host1:06
Wow, that is absolutely shocking. And I will say this, uh, the show also chases its own curiosity, and sadly, uh, the death of iconic actors. I mean, in this last, uh, bit of time, Amy, we have lost so many iconic actors, actresses, directors that, uh, a lot of the times we are finding ourselves memorializing,