In Grumpy Old Men, snow is falling in Minnesota; the holidays are coming. John Gustafson (Jack Lemmon) and Max Goldman (Walter Matthau) are next-door neighbors who've been feuding for decades. They delight only in ice-fishing and their hatred for one another, expressed by their joy in constantly creating new and more ridiculous insults to hurl across the yard. Unbeknownst to Max, however, John is in trouble with the IRS, desperate not to lose his home, and he is scared.When the beautiful and sexy Ariel Truax (Ann-Margret) moves in across the street, the rivalry intensifies. Both John's and Max's sexual appetites, dormant for a long while, appear afresh, turning them into the lustful teenage foes they once were. Ariel's considerable attention to both of them, as well as increasing pressure from the taxman, bring events to crisis point.