Grumpy Old Men (1993)

It's Christmas but two elderly curmudgeons (Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau), who are next door neighbors, continue their decades old squabble over one of them "stealing" a girlfriend during their youth. Directed by Donald Petrie (MYSTIC PIZZA), this movie just wouldn't be the same without the pairing of Lemmon and Matthau (in their sixth film together) whose chemistry elevates a routine comedy into an amusing romp. Audiences agreed and this was a surprise box office hit that spawned a sequel two years later. The comedic timing of these two old pros is as sharp as Abbott and Costello (though better actors than A&C) and they play off each other like a well seasoned pair of vaudevillians. A better script would have nice but there's something to be said about the pure pleasure of watching veteran actors strutting their stuff. Ann-Margret provides just the right amount of feminine pulchritude as the new woman in town. With Daryl Hannah, Burgess Meredith (quite funny), Ossie Davis, Kevin Pollak, Buck Henry and Christopher McDonald.