I simply love this movie. I was either cracking up or smiling at the large majority of this movie. I hate to say it, but this is the best movie I've seen Walter Matthau in. I've seen "The Odd Couple," "The Taking of Pelham One Two Three," "The Bad News Bears," "Buddy Buddy," and "Grumpy Old Men," and those are all charming movies in their own right, but I think this movie is special.

Walter Matthau plays a 91-year-old man of shifting name and background that all center around socialism, communism, and fighting capitalism. He is there to help the common man no matter what role he must assume to do it. He's never the same person two days in a row and his daughter, Clara (Amy Irving),is somehow always wrapped up into his shenanigans. His favorite ear is Midge Carter (Ossie Davis),who is a near-blind building superintendent just trying to hold onto his job until Christmas. Midge can't get away from the multi-faced Matthau character, and it is too funny. Everyday Midge resolves himself not to speak to his park bench companion because of his lies, and everyday he falls for yet another lie.

On some levels their existence is sad: being old, forgotten, victims, irrelevant, invisible. On other levels their existence is hilarious: the liberty, the antics--and the hilarity seems to triumph over the sadness. Truly, the movie is about dealing with old age--do you fight it, do you accept it? "I'm Not Rappaport" isn't about a last hurrah, grand schemes, or miraculous accomplishments by a couple of old guys. It's not "Cocoon," "Batteries Not Included," or "Tough Guys." It is very realistic in its depiction which makes it so endearing. I don't want to say it's my favorite geriatrics movie because I liked the movie "Remember" (2015) better, but it is definitely in my top five.

A couple of old codgers who were playing slightly beyond their actual ages make I'm Not Rappaport a really delightful film, especially for us senior citizens who can now identify with it. I couldn't much when the movie came out or Herb Gardiner's play ran on Broadway from 1985 to 1988 for 891 performances. Judd Hirsch and Cleavon Little played the roles on Broadway that Walter Matthau and Ossie Davis do in the film.

There's a nice free flowing chemistry between Matthau and Davis. Matthau was literally born to play this role given his Lower East Side upbringing with family of the same general background as his Nat Moyer.

Matthau's discovered that the elderly can get away with just about anything and maybe helped by a bit of dementia he spins the kind of yarns that in old Hollywood westerns might have made him a Yiddishe sidekick. He's an old leftist from back in the 30s when it was most respectable. Bernie Sanders would have gotten this guy.

Davis has lived for 40 years as a building superintendent in a Fifth Avenue and the building is going co-op and he's about to be let go. Davis likes Matthau in his own way, but hasn't quite gotten the hang of laying it on the way Matthau does. See the two of them, especially Matthau take on the co-op president Boyd Gaines.

The play only had the one setting of the park bench in Central Park where these two commiserate. But with Herb Gardner adapting his own play, the beautiful fall vistas of Central Park makes the park itself a character in the film.

But you really have to see how Matthau and Davis play off against each other so well. That's what puts them in the seats and now renting the film on Netflicks.

Two old men sitting on a park bench . I don`t really have a problem with this scene - Only problem is that it`s not a scene it`s the entire movie

Yup movies don`t get anymore low concept than this . They also don`t get anymore boring than this either , but there`s worse to come because these two old men are chalk and cheese . One is Nat Moyer who is Yiddish communist while the other is Midge Carter a former golden gloves champion who`s also black . Let me see now , a Jew and a black man sitting on a park bench getting along fine . Well I guess it`s possible though unlikely , but if this film has such an inoffensive scenario why play up to the Jewish stereotype ? Why make them loud tribilistic rabble rousers who take hebrew oaths ? Slightly ironic that the Jews seen at the start of the movie are exactly the type of Jews seen in Nazi propaganda films in the 1930s

Stereotypes aside moi dearz the problem with I`M NOT RAPPAPORT is that it`s written for an entirely different meduim than cinema , it`s based on a stage play and it shows . Walter Matthau sleepwalks through his role as Nat while this commentator almost slept through the whole movie