Amazon.com Essentials:
Writer Ernest Thompson, who came up with the original stage
play of On Golden Pond and adapted it for film, is lucky to
have two giants of the screen give dignity and breadth to his
sometimes trite dialogue. Henry Fonda, in his last role, plays a
prickly English professor at the disagreeable age of 80. Visiting his
summer house by a Maine lake with his wife (Katharine Hepburn), the
old man forges an unlikely bond with a lonely boy, comes to terms with
his daughter (Jane Fonda), and suffers disorienting effects of mild
dementia. Even playing a tired old man, Fonda is an absolute lion of a
movie star, and Hepburn brings her special spirit to the part of his
worried bride. The onscreen relationship between Henry and Jane Fonda
naturally makes one think about their much-discussed difficulties
offscreen, but that's a side benefit in a movie that is really just a
celebration of simple human decency. Directed by Mark Rydell (Harry
and Walter Go to New York). The DVD release has widescreen
presentation, director's commentary, documentary footage on the making
of the film, theatrical trailer, notes and information about the
production, and optional Spanish subtitles. --Tom Keogh
Amazon.com Essentials:
Writer Ernest Thompson, who came up with the original stage
play of On Golden Pond and adapted it for film, is lucky to
have two giants of the screen give dignity and breadth to his
sometimes trite dialogue. Henry Fonda, in his last role, plays a
prickly English professor at the disagreeable age of 80. Visiting his
summer house by a Maine lake with his wife (Katharine Hepburn), the
old man forges an unlikely bond with a lonely boy, comes to terms with
his daughter (Jane Fonda), and suffers disorienting effects of mild
dementia. Even playing a tired old man, Fonda is an absolute lion of a
movie star, and Hepburn brings her special spirit to the part of his
worried bride. The onscreen relationship between Henry and Jane Fonda
naturally makes one think about their much-discussed difficulties
offscreen, but that's a side benefit in a movie that is really just a
celebration of simple human decency. Directed by Mark Rydell (Harry
and Walter Go to New York). The DVD release has widescreen
presentation, director's commentary, documentary footage on the making
of the film, theatrical trailer, notes and information about the
production, and optional Spanish subtitles. --Tom Keogh
