A New Leaf

You could hardly do better for a comic movie team than Walter Matthau and Elaine May, unless it is Matthau and Lemmon. May wrote, directed, and co-stars here. He is a playboy and a wastrel who finds out he has spent all his money (in a hilarious scene with his accountant) and now desperately needs to marry a rich woman so he can kill her and inherit. He drives a Ferrari that can probably go up to three or four miles before it breaks down and needs a tow. Enter May, as a very rich, ultra-mega-awkward botanist nerd, and she seems perfect. You know his flinty heart will melt in the end, but getting to that point is tons of fun. Elaine May is still alive at 88, and won a Tony award just last year. Did you know that she and Mike Nichols only worked together for four years? They totally revolutionized stand-up comedy.