A New Leaf

A great first feature, that May wasn’t necessarily satisfied with (Paramount cut the film by half), but it seems it was just a question of her perfectionism. The film is not weighed down by artistic ambition but filled with funny jokes (not easy to find in a comedy!) and it could only have been made in the 1970s, when genres crumbled under the pressure of reality. In this story about a narcissistic, impoverished bourgeois (a charmingly unpleasant Walter Matthau) who wants to improve his financial situation by marrying a rich botany professor (Elaine May herself!), we find elements of urban satire, a crazy romantic comedy and dark sense of humour which brings to mind Arsenic and Old Lace. The film includes elements such as the stupid rituals of the rich, love at first dollar and… murder plans.

Patrycja Mucha