A New Leaf · reception & legacy

1971 · Elaine May

How A New Leaf has been received, argued over, and remembered.

The arc

Reviewed warmly in 1971 but disowned by Elaine May after Paramount cut it down, it spent decades as a semi-lost gem before being rediscovered as one of the great American comedies — the reappraisal of May's whole career starts here.

What's debated

The eternal cinephile debate: Paramount's cut is the only one we have — is it a butchered compromise or accidentally perfect anyway, and will May's fabled long version ever surface?

Its footprint

Endlessly quoted on Letterboxd — the Grecian-nightgown scene and 'carbon on the valves' are running jokes — and the film is Exhibit A whenever film Twitter litigates how Hollywood wronged Elaine May.

Where it stands

A cult object turned canon climber: the beloved entry point to the 'Elaine May was robbed' school of cinephilia and a certified Letterboxd darling.

★ Did you know? Elaine May's original cut ran close to three hours and was darker in tone; when Paramount re-edited it to 102 minutes, she sued the studio to have her name removed from the film — and lost.