Harold (film)
Encyclopedia
Harold is a 2008 American comedy film
, co-written by Greg Fields and T. Sean Shannon
, starring Spencer Breslin
, Cuba Gooding Jr., Nikki Blonsky, Ally Sheedy
and Stella Maeve
. The film is T. Sean Shannon's first full-length feature
and is partially adapted from his earlier short film, which itself was adapted from one of his Saturday Night Live
skits. It was also released six years after the death of Greg Fields.
Harold was filmed in August 2007 in and around Great Neck, Long Island
, NY
which is also the hometown of Nikki Blonsky and Morris S. Levy , and had a limited release on July 11, 2008 in Los Angeles
, Miami, and New York City
. The film is rated PG-13 by the MPAA and by the television content rating system in the United States.
) is a 14-year-old boy with early male pattern baldness. Harold seems to cope all right in his hometown, Douglasburg, until his mom, Maureen (Ally Sheedy
), announces that they are moving to a new house in a new town. Harold panics because he had somewhat fit in with everyone at his old school, despite his baldness.
When he arrives in his new house, he is met by an elderly new neighbor, Maude (Suzanne Shepherd
), who assumes Harold is older because of his baldness, and starts flirting with him. Harold starts at his new school, and because he initially wore a hat into class, he was seemingly accepted, especially by a girl, Evelyn (Elizabeth Gillies
), who he briefly flirts with. When the teacher, Ms. Vicki Norris (Rachel Dratch
), notices him wearing a hat, he is forced to take it off, thus revealing that he is bald. Instantly he is ostracized by the other students, including Evelyn.
Meanwhile, Harold's older sister, Shelley (Stella Maeve
), has started High School in the new town as an immensely popular and flirty cheerleader. She meets a boy named Patrick (Robert Gorry) and they quickly start dating, which leads to an amusing anecdote involving Patrick assuming that Harold is Shelley's father. To "even things out", Patrick asks Harold to buy some beer for him and his friends, which works multiple times.
Meanwhile, back at school, Harold is being bullied relentlessly by students. In fact, one of the few nice people are Cromer Styles (Cuba Gooding, Jr), the school janitor. Whilst in gym class, the bullying rears its ugly head and the Coach (Chris Parnell
) joins in on the bullying, Cromer comes to the rescue when he announces Harold is wanted in the office, However that was just a decoy to get Harold away from the bullying, Cromer and Harold watch TV in the janitor's room.
Harold returns home, angry and upset, and decides to leave home, to go to back his old home, where everyone liked him. However, he must leave pretty late at night, so his Mom and sister won't get suspicious, He only makes it as far as a strip bar, and thinking because he looks older, he may pass for legal age, However as it happens, Cromer was also there, and takes Harold home. He gives Harold words of encouragement, and then drops him off at home.
The next day in gym class, Harold is asked to take his shirt off as part of the Skins and Shirts team, Harold doesn't want to because he has a big strip of hair on his back, and sure enough, everyone starts laughing at him, He goes and talks to Cromer, who both decide to pull a prank on the coach—when the coach is in the shower they put the water on freezing cold, the coach never finds out it was them though.
Not wanting to go back to school, Harold goes and buys a few beers for himself, whilst there Maude starts to follow Harold (still thinking he is older). When he tells her he is 14, she thinks that means the size of his manhood, however when he explains he is only 14 years old, she tells him to come back in a few years.
Patrick and his buddies ask Harold for one more favor, to get them some beer for a party, Harold buys the beer, but is arrested by police, because he is an "adult" selling beers to minors, even when he says his age, they think he is being a smart-aleck. He is taken into jail and asked if he wants a "turkey sandwich" which is slang for oral sex
. He declines, and is bailed out by Cromer, who again comes to his rescue.
Later that night, Patrick apologizes for what happened, and tells Harold he wants to have sex with Harold's sister, Shelley tells Harold she doesn't really want to have sex, but still likes Patrick a bit, so they get Cromer to wait outside the hotel room, Shelley goes out, and Patrick ends up having sex with Maude (The horny lady, who thought Harold was older).
There is a go cart race coming up, Some of the bullies put a dent in Harold's cart, making him slow down, however Cromer sees it and repairs it. A lady from the crowds show her breasts to the horny bullies and this distracts them, and Harold wins the race, and ultimately the respect of the school.
The movie ends with Harold holding his trophy, and the bullies apologizing for teasing him, and that they now want to be friends.
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
, co-written by Greg Fields and T. Sean Shannon
T. Sean Shannon
T. Sean Shannon is a comedy writer originally from Houston, Texas.As a writer for Saturday Night Live he won an Emmy Award in 2002 and a WGA Award in 2001 . He is the writer and creator of the sketch Bear City, which deals with a city completely inhabited by anthropomorphic bears due to a meteor...
, starring Spencer Breslin
Spencer Breslin
Spencer Breslin is an American teen actor and musician.-Early life:Breslin was born in New York City, the son of Kim, a personal manager, and Michael Breslin, a telecommunications expert...
, Cuba Gooding Jr., Nikki Blonsky, Ally Sheedy
Ally Sheedy
Alexandra Elizabeth "Ally" Sheedy is an American film and stage actress, as well as the author of two books. She is best known for her roles in the Brat Pack films The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire.-Early life:...
and Stella Maeve
Stella Maeve
Stella Maeve Johnston is a young American television and film actress. She is best known for her roles in Gossip Girl and in the indie films Harold, The Beautiful Ordinary...
. The film is T. Sean Shannon's first full-length feature
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
and is partially adapted from his earlier short film, which itself was adapted from one of his Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
skits. It was also released six years after the death of Greg Fields.
Harold was filmed in August 2007 in and around Great Neck, Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, NY
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
which is also the hometown of Nikki Blonsky and Morris S. Levy , and had a limited release on July 11, 2008 in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, Miami, and New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. The film is rated PG-13 by the MPAA and by the television content rating system in the United States.
Plot
Harold Reynolds (Spencer BreslinSpencer Breslin
Spencer Breslin is an American teen actor and musician.-Early life:Breslin was born in New York City, the son of Kim, a personal manager, and Michael Breslin, a telecommunications expert...
) is a 14-year-old boy with early male pattern baldness. Harold seems to cope all right in his hometown, Douglasburg, until his mom, Maureen (Ally Sheedy
Ally Sheedy
Alexandra Elizabeth "Ally" Sheedy is an American film and stage actress, as well as the author of two books. She is best known for her roles in the Brat Pack films The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire.-Early life:...
), announces that they are moving to a new house in a new town. Harold panics because he had somewhat fit in with everyone at his old school, despite his baldness.
When he arrives in his new house, he is met by an elderly new neighbor, Maude (Suzanne Shepherd
Suzanne Shepherd
Suzanne Shepherd is an American actress and theater director. She is best known for her portrayal of Karen's overbearing mother in the film Goodfellas, and Carmela's overbearing mother in the television program The Sopranos. Shepherd studied acting with Sanford Meisner, and later went on to teach...
), who assumes Harold is older because of his baldness, and starts flirting with him. Harold starts at his new school, and because he initially wore a hat into class, he was seemingly accepted, especially by a girl, Evelyn (Elizabeth Gillies
Elizabeth Gillies
Elizabeth Egan "Liz" Gillies is an American actress, singer, and dancer. She is best known for her part in Broadway's 13 as Lucy, of which her Victorious co-star, Ariana Grande, was also a part...
), who he briefly flirts with. When the teacher, Ms. Vicki Norris (Rachel Dratch
Rachel Dratch
Rachel Susan Dratch is an American comic actress best known for her roles as a cast member of Saturday Night Live from 1999 to 2006.-Early life:...
), notices him wearing a hat, he is forced to take it off, thus revealing that he is bald. Instantly he is ostracized by the other students, including Evelyn.
Meanwhile, Harold's older sister, Shelley (Stella Maeve
Stella Maeve
Stella Maeve Johnston is a young American television and film actress. She is best known for her roles in Gossip Girl and in the indie films Harold, The Beautiful Ordinary...
), has started High School in the new town as an immensely popular and flirty cheerleader. She meets a boy named Patrick (Robert Gorry) and they quickly start dating, which leads to an amusing anecdote involving Patrick assuming that Harold is Shelley's father. To "even things out", Patrick asks Harold to buy some beer for him and his friends, which works multiple times.
Meanwhile, back at school, Harold is being bullied relentlessly by students. In fact, one of the few nice people are Cromer Styles (Cuba Gooding, Jr), the school janitor. Whilst in gym class, the bullying rears its ugly head and the Coach (Chris Parnell
Chris Parnell
Thomas Christopher "Chris" Parnell is an American comic actor best known as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1998–2006 and currently for his recurring role as Dr. Leo Spaceman on NBC's Emmy Award-winning comedy series 30 Rock. Parnell also voices Cyril Figgis on the FX animated comedy...
) joins in on the bullying, Cromer comes to the rescue when he announces Harold is wanted in the office, However that was just a decoy to get Harold away from the bullying, Cromer and Harold watch TV in the janitor's room.
Harold returns home, angry and upset, and decides to leave home, to go to back his old home, where everyone liked him. However, he must leave pretty late at night, so his Mom and sister won't get suspicious, He only makes it as far as a strip bar, and thinking because he looks older, he may pass for legal age, However as it happens, Cromer was also there, and takes Harold home. He gives Harold words of encouragement, and then drops him off at home.
The next day in gym class, Harold is asked to take his shirt off as part of the Skins and Shirts team, Harold doesn't want to because he has a big strip of hair on his back, and sure enough, everyone starts laughing at him, He goes and talks to Cromer, who both decide to pull a prank on the coach—when the coach is in the shower they put the water on freezing cold, the coach never finds out it was them though.
Not wanting to go back to school, Harold goes and buys a few beers for himself, whilst there Maude starts to follow Harold (still thinking he is older). When he tells her he is 14, she thinks that means the size of his manhood, however when he explains he is only 14 years old, she tells him to come back in a few years.
Patrick and his buddies ask Harold for one more favor, to get them some beer for a party, Harold buys the beer, but is arrested by police, because he is an "adult" selling beers to minors, even when he says his age, they think he is being a smart-aleck. He is taken into jail and asked if he wants a "turkey sandwich" which is slang for oral sex
Oral sex
Oral sex is sexual activity involving the stimulation of the genitalia of a sex partner by the use of the mouth, tongue, teeth or throat. Cunnilingus refers to oral sex performed on females while fellatio refer to oral sex performed on males. Anilingus refers to oral stimulation of a person's anus...
. He declines, and is bailed out by Cromer, who again comes to his rescue.
Later that night, Patrick apologizes for what happened, and tells Harold he wants to have sex with Harold's sister, Shelley tells Harold she doesn't really want to have sex, but still likes Patrick a bit, so they get Cromer to wait outside the hotel room, Shelley goes out, and Patrick ends up having sex with Maude (The horny lady, who thought Harold was older).
There is a go cart race coming up, Some of the bullies put a dent in Harold's cart, making him slow down, however Cromer sees it and repairs it. A lady from the crowds show her breasts to the horny bullies and this distracts them, and Harold wins the race, and ultimately the respect of the school.
The movie ends with Harold holding his trophy, and the bullies apologizing for teasing him, and that they now want to be friends.
Cast
- Spencer BreslinSpencer BreslinSpencer Breslin is an American teen actor and musician.-Early life:Breslin was born in New York City, the son of Kim, a personal manager, and Michael Breslin, a telecommunications expert...
as Harold Reynolds - Cuba Gooding, Jr.Cuba Gooding, Jr.Cuba M. Gooding, Jr. is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his Academy Award-winning portrayal of Rod Tidwell in Cameron Crowe's 1996 film Jerry Maguire, and his critically acclaimed performance as Tré Styles in John Singleton's 1991 film Boyz n the Hood.-Early life:Gooding was born...
as Cromer Styles - Nikki Blonsky as Rhonda Baxter
- Ally SheedyAlly SheedyAlexandra Elizabeth "Ally" Sheedy is an American film and stage actress, as well as the author of two books. She is best known for her roles in the Brat Pack films The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire.-Early life:...
as Maureen Reynolds - Stella MaeveStella MaeveStella Maeve Johnston is a young American television and film actress. She is best known for her roles in Gossip Girl and in the indie films Harold, The Beautiful Ordinary...
as Shelly Reynolds - Fred WillardFred WillardFred Willard is an American actor, comedian, and voice over actor, best known for his improvisational comedy skills. He is known for his roles in the Christopher Guest mockumentary films This is Spinal Tap, Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind, and For Your Consideration as well as...
as Dr.Richard Pratt - Rachel DratchRachel DratchRachel Susan Dratch is an American comic actress best known for her roles as a cast member of Saturday Night Live from 1999 to 2006.-Early life:...
as Ms. Norris - Chris ParnellChris ParnellThomas Christopher "Chris" Parnell is an American comic actor best known as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1998–2006 and currently for his recurring role as Dr. Leo Spaceman on NBC's Emmy Award-winning comedy series 30 Rock. Parnell also voices Cyril Figgis on the FX animated comedy...
as Coach Vanderpool - Elizabeth GilliesElizabeth GilliesElizabeth Egan "Liz" Gillies is an American actress, singer, and dancer. She is best known for her part in Broadway's 13 as Lucy, of which her Victorious co-star, Ariana Grande, was also a part...
as Evelyn Taylor - Dave AttellDave AttellDave Attell is an American stand-up comedian and the host of Comedy Central's Insomniac with Dave Attell and The Gong Show with Dave Attell.-Stand-up beginning:...
as Barker - Wass Stevens as Buck
- Derek NelsonDerek NelsonDerek Nelson is an American film and television actor.-Biography:Nelson was born in Reading, Pennsylvania. He was raised in Berks County, Pennsylvania. Nelson had attended the Twin Valley High School coming with a High school diploma in 2006. He had graduated with honors despite being the class...
as Mason - Robert Gorry as Patrick
- Dylan Snyder as Dylan
- Alan Aisenberg as Malcolm
- Paul Thornton as Mr. Kahane
- Angel Sing as Chang
- Colin QuinnColin QuinnColin Edward Quinn is an American stand-up comedian and writer best known for his five years in the cast of Saturday Night Live, as the sidekick/announcer of MTV's late 1980s gameshow Remote Control and as host of Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn on Comedy Central from 2002–2004.-Early years:Quinn was...
as Reedy - Nicky KattNicky KattNicholas Lea "Nicky" Katt is an American actor known for his role as unorthodox teacher Harry Senate on David E. Kelley's Fox drama Boston Public.-Career:...
as Police officer #1 - Nicola PeltzNicola PeltzNicola Peltz is an American actress. Her most notable role to date is Katara in the 2010 film The Last Airbender, directed by M. Night Shyamalan.-Career:...
as Becki
External links
- Harold (film) at Rotten TomatoesRotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...