Curmudgeons Review
4/5 stars
Throughout his career, Danny DeVito has proved that it’s possible to be short (1.47m) and still pack a punch, and his compact comedy film Curmudgeons is no exception.
The film stars DeVito’s daughter, Lucy, as a 30-something singleton who is trying to arrange a lovely surprise for her curmudgeonly old granddad, Ralph (David Margulies).
The surprise is a visit from Jackie (Danny DeVito), Ralph’s beloved partner in curmudgeonry, who has an important question to ask.
With a running time of just 15 minutes, you’re not kept in suspense for long as to what that question is — and the reveal is very sweet (and contemporary).
The strength of the movie lies in the deadpan dialogue that New Yorkers do famously well.
All the swearing, shouting, and wise guy quips take on a sadness because the film is set in an assisted living facility, and it’s quite clear that both Jackie and Ralph are on the decline.
Margulies plays Ralph as teetering on the edge between comic ‘grumpy granddad’ and true senility.
But the film wears its more serious themes lightly, which must partly be thanks to its impromptu origin.
DeVito, together with Lucy and his son Jake, produced and shot the film over the course of three days on a shoestring budget, using loaned cameras and mostly natural light.
Production began after DeVito visited a non-profit theatre in Brooklyn and watched a one-act play (called Curmudgeons) that he decided to turn into a short film.
Margulies, best known for playing the mayor in Ghostbusters and Tony Soprano’s lawyer, was Ralph in the stage version and, as he and DeVito had been friends for over 40 years, was invited by the DeVitos to star in the film.
Curmudgeons is dedicated to Margulies, who had cancer at the time of filming and passed away before the official release.
The finished project, which he never saw, is a tender look at how, even in the sunset of life, new horizons can appear.
