Norman is a curmudgeon with an estranged relationship with his daughter Chelsea. At Golden Pond, he and his wife nevertheless agree to care for Billy, the son of Chelsea's new boyfriend, and a most unexpected relationship blooms.
From memory: Old-fashioned, conservative and at times humorous family drama convinces by the sheer strength of the three stars' performances.
Halliwel***: "A film remarkable not so much for what it is - a well-acted, decent screen presentation of a rather waffling and sentimental play - as for the fact that in the sophisticated eighties enough people paid to see it to make it a box-office record-breaker. This was mainly due to affection for its star, whose last film it was, but also to an American desire for a reversion to the old values of warmth and humanity after the sex and violence which the screen had lately been offering."
Maltin***: "Fonda, in his last feature, is no less than brilliant...Hepburn...Sometimes simplistic comedy-drama...gets a heavy dose of Star Quality."
