This film was shot in 1971 in southern California.
Its music was created and interpreted by Cat Steven.
Harold Chasen is a young boy who was educated in a wealthy family.
After a chemical explosion, he caused in his school, policemen told his mother about his alleged death.
But he was not dead and observed his mother’s reaction.
Since then, performing several “false suicides” has become one of her favorite pastimes: hang in the living room, drown in a swimming pool, cut the veins in the bathroom, and so on… He tells his psychologist that he performed about 15 different suicides.
His mother now makes no longer see him but she can’t take it anymore… She wants to marry him and organize many dates with young quiet ladies.
But Harold does not want it and does everything to frighten them.
His uncle also wants to engage his nephew in the army but, one more time, Harold does everything to be refuted.
Another passion of the young man is to attend funerals.
He also buys a hearse as a car and when his mother offers him a new car, he does not like it.
One day, he meets Maud, a 79 years old eccentric woman who have the same pastime.
She becomes his first friend.
At home, Maud collects a lot of stuff.
She is a kind of “rag and bone woman”.
Together, they play music, they plant a tree from the city center in the forest, they assist to a building destruction with a wrecking ball… Harold offers a gift to Maud one which it is written “Harold loves Maud”.
She answers, “Maud loves Harold”.
Maud has a number tattooed on her left arm.
She was deported during World War II because she was a political opponent who militated for peace for instance.
Harold announce that he wants to get married with Maud.
His mother, his uncle and his psychologist are absolutely against this because of the age difference.
The day of Maud’s 80th birthday, she announced that she took the pills to suicide her.
She said, at the beginning of the film, that 75 years old is too early but 80 years old is a great age to died.
Harold is obviously extremely sad.
The last scene of the film shows Harold in his car who falls off the cliff.
Then, we see Harold at the top of the cliff, playing banjo.