VHS : On Golden Pond [1981]

Rating: - Feels like they filmed the stage play.
I certainly enjoyed what is a comfortable if slightly predictable story, but as a film this one falls somewhat short of deserving its "classic" status, never mind its three academy awards, especially so, the award for best screenplay. Why? Well surely the mark of a truly great film is its ability to draw the viewer in, to remove the camera and allow the audience to immerse themselves in the scene, to become in effect, silent participants. The actors become "real" characters caught in a moment of "real life"; the artificiality of actors actually acting is lost.

Well you certainly don't get that here. The whole effect is rather like watching a stage play from way back in the stalls. The actors might play their characters perfectly competently, but the audience can never escape the reality of watching actors on a stage. With this film the chief culprit is probably the script, which never appears obviously artificial but equally seems not quite to reflect how real people converse. A slightly artificial delivery also seems to afflict the leads, Hepburn and the two Fondas, all of whom deliver their lines as if for the benefit of unseen others in the scene who also happen to be slightly deaf.

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Rating: - A delightfully heartwarming movie
In this delightfully heartwarming film two cinema legend's ,Katherine Hepburn and Henry Fonda, are matched up for the first time ,with spectacular results .Hepburn and Fonda play an elderly,bickering married couple coming to terms with age .They are celebrating his 80th birthday when their estranged daughter (played by Henry's real life daughter Jane) turns up out of the blue with a new fiancee' and his 12 year old son in tow . The daughter and her dentist boyfreind plan to go on vacation to Europe and leave the 12 year old boy with the old couple .First off the boy is rude and unappreactive of the efforts of Katherine Hepburns character to welcome him ,but towards the end he slowly warms to them and by the end doesn't want to leave .In between this time there are some worrying sequences dealing with senile dementia and some funny sequences that will have you laughing . So sit back with some popcorn and enjoy the oscar winning performances of the leads and laugh at the subtle humour .Overall a brilliant feelgood movie complete with sparkling perfomances by all involved .Enjoy .