Grumpier Old Men (1995)

Load of rubbish!!

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

I thoroughly enjoyed this outing, but I can readily understand all the negative reviews. Let's face it: The appeal of any movie depends almost entirely on the age of the person watching it, and there is absolutely nothing in this movie that would appeal to teenagers and people in their twenties, thirties, forties and possibly fifties. In fact, not only does the movie have no appeal to these groups, the vast majority would actually hate it. But I found this film most entertaining. And it was good to see Sophia Loren looking so alluring. I'll admit Ann-Margret wasn't quite so startlingly sexy, but she was still looking quite attractive. I wouldn't mind a date with her myself! I'd also admit that Walter Matthau tended to way over-act, but that's Walter Matthau. He always over-acts. That's his shtick! Director Howard Deutch did a pretty good job, though he tended to use far too many close-ups and was way, way over-fond of unflattering shots of Walter Matthau. I might be wrong, but at a guess, I would say his training was in TV. As a general rule, TV directors seem unable to shake off their training when they move over to the big screen.

It's not uncommon for a movie sequel to do little to the formula that made its predecessor so financially (and hopefully critically) successful. The old "if it ain't broke don't fix it" method of filmmaking has been used in the Hangover, Home Alone, and Taken franchise to only modest success in terms of quality. However, in Grumpier Old Men, the sequel to the fine comedy Grumpy Old Men, handles the rehashed formula better than many film sequels do.While I'm getting to sound repetitive and out of descriptive words, this is largely because of Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau's chemistry together on-screen. From the moment they appear, it's almost impossible to believe the men's friendship in real life wasn't lifelong and consisted largely of playful torment, vulgarity, and several boys nights out. Had the film been a sequel with few returning cast members (say Lemmon and Matthau were substituted by two other actors), this sequel would've likely been a somber affair to view.In a way, I'm thankful the town of Wabasha Minnesota hasn't really changed much since our last outing, with the exception of John Gustafson (Jack Lemon) marrying Ariel (Ann-Margret) from the original film. In the meantime, John's dad still lives off a diet of beer, cigarettes, and bacon and Max Goldman (Walter Matthau), John's cantankerous neighbor, still finds himself engaging in petty neighborhood battles with John about outwitting the other man. However, the big ordeal this time is not competing for a new neighbor's love but trying to save a local bait shop from becoming a "restaurante" for Italian cuisine. The restaurant is managed by Maria Ragetti (Sophia Loren), a gorgeous but uncompromisingly strict woman who catches the eye of Max even as him and Jack plan to foil the restaurant's forthcoming prosperity.Other events (aka subplots) occurring in Wabasha are the wedding between Max's son Jacob (Kevin Pollak) John's daughter Melanie (Daryl Hannah), a plot which would later be used by the same director Howard Deutch in The Odd Couple II, also starring Lemmon and Matthau, along with John trying to get his father (Burgess Meredith in his final role, which was burdened by spouts with Alzheimer's and difficultly remembering lines, some female company as he gets older. One of Grumpier Old Men's immediate issues is that there is simply too much going on between plot-strands that involve marriage/romance troubles (I counted four including John's brief trouble with Ariel later in the movie) ad others that involve trying to sabotage the bait-shop-turned-restaurant.Grumpier Old Men may have too many new ideas for cutesy subplots, but it keeps the tone and feel of its predecessor alive and well. It still feels like Wabasha is the location of a sitcom with its oddball situations that seem to consistently bear hefty consequences for its residents, but its characters still feel like real people we've come to known and care about.Unsurprisingly, Lemmon and Matthau share unbelievable conversational beauty in the way they engage in simple discussions that seem to constantly end in uproariously funny bickering. Once you minimize your focus on that aspect in the film, you have just an average comedy that, while charming and pleasantly safe (a good and bad quality for this particular kind of picture), is just grateful to be buoyed by two very talented leading men.Starring: Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau, Ann-Margret, Kevin Pollak, Daryl Hannah, Sophia Loren, and Burgess Meredith. Directed by: Howard Deutch.

In this bright sequel to "Grumpy Old Men" we find John (Jack Lemmon) and Max (Walter Matthau) at it again. The rivalry never stops. This time, they are bickering over their children's nuptials, almost causing a wedding not to occur.Sophia Loren co-stars as Maria in this foray into the land of 10,000 lakes as the new girl in town that Max has an eye for. At first, they both hate one another because she is turning his beloved tackle shop into a restaurant. Comedy ensues as Max and John both try to get the restaurant shut down and condemned.Eventually, as in the first film, love finds a way. However, sadness veils over as well when Burgess Meredith's character dies. Other than that, the film is very enjoyable.

Grumpier Old Men (1995) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Sequel to Grumpy Old Men have Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau returning with more fights and foul language. This time out Lemmon is still happily married but Matthau is on the move and takes a special interest in an Italian woman (Sophia Loren) who has just moved to town. I think the most remarkable thing about this film is how well Loren looked. Even at 61 she's still a head turner and her comic timing isn't too bad either. I'm sure this film was only made because the first one made money but it doesn't really matter as no one should take this too serious as it's just a silly comedy meant to make you laugh. There are plenty of nice laughs here but I don't think it's as good as the original. This certainly isn't in the league as The Odd Couple but we do get a pretty good throwback to that film here as there's a scene where Lemmon has to spend the night with Matthau but can't put up with his dirty house. Ann-Margret returns but is pretty much wasted as is Daryl Hannah and Kevin Pollak. The perverted Burgess Meredith is back and steals the scene every time he's in it. Both Matthau and Lemmon are naturally very good and they easily slip back into their roles. It's priceless watching the two men work together even when the material isn't as strong as one would hope. Lemmon gets a special notice here due to a very touching scene with Meredith. Another problem is the direction, which has one of those "made for TV" feels to it. In the end this film could have and should have been a lot better but the cast make it worth watching.