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Movies / On DVD / Planes, Trains and Automobiles
Planes, Trains and Automobiles

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Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)

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95 %
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Reviews Counted: 41

Fresh: 39

Rotten:2

Average Rating: 7.8/10

Runtime: 1 hr 33 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: All Neal Page (Steve Martin) wants to do is make it home from a business trip in New York City and spend Thanksgiving with his family in Chicago. Instead, he finds himself rerouted from New York's... All Neal Page (Steve Martin) wants to do is make it home from a business trip in New York City and spend Thanksgiving with his family in Chicago. Instead, he finds himself rerouted from New York's La Guardia Airport to Wichita, Kansas. With no other options, Neal decides to share a room in a fleabag hotel with Del Griffith (John Candy), a shower-curtain-ring salesman and fellow stranded traveler. Although Neal finds Del to be a buffoon, he just can't seem to get away from him. To make matters worse, all their efforts to get back to Chicago fail as trains break down and rental cars catch on fire. Along the way they encounter crazy cabbies, redneck truck drivers, and oversexed bus passengers. John Hughes's (SIXTEEN CANDLES, THE BREAKFAST CLUB) first film to feature adults after his success with teen films features fine performances from Martin and Candy. Kevin Bacon, who appeared in Hughes's next film, SHE'S HAVING A BABY, makes a small but humorous appearance, as does Edie McClurg, known for her role as the high school secretary in FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF. [More]

Starring: Steve Martin, John Candy, Kevin Bacon, Michael McKean

Starring: Steve Martin, John Candy, Kevin Bacon, Michael McKean, William Windom

Director: John Hughes

Director: John Hughes

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Nov 21, 2000

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Planes, Trains and Automobiles

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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It is, of course, always a pleasure to watch Martin's steam-gauge face register his rising internal pressures and to witness his exquisitely expressed blowoffs. But Candy offers even more insinuating delights.

Full Review Source: TIME Magazine | comment Comment
11/21/08
Richard Schickel
TIME Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Producer-director-writer Hughes infuses his film with an appealing sense of sentiment and humanity -- not to mention many hilarious scenes.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
11/21/08
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Man versus technology has been one of the staples of screen comedy since the earliest silent days, and Hughes makes the most of the format here packing as many of the frustrations of modern life as he can into this calamitous travelog of roadside America.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
11/21/08
Variety Staff
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
03/09/08
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

No review available.

comment Comment
11/13/07
Susan Granger
www.susangranger.com

This slapstick comedy -- with Steve Martin playing the fussy straight man -- should never have worked, but it does, and well enough to earn a place as a holiday classic.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment 1 Comment
11/17/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

There's plenty of big laughs in this odd-couple comedy, but the main characters are also given a number of human moments, which leads to an ending that's downright poignant.

comment Comment
02/20/06
Chuck O'Leary
FulvueDrive-in.com

Essentially, it's the stars' keenly observed nuances of character that make this comedy amiable enough.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Derek Adams
Time Out

No review available.

comment Comment
07/24/05
Christian Toto
Washington Times

No review available.

comment Comment
07/07/05
Joe Williams
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

No review available.

comment 1 Comment
06/26/05
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

comment Comment
05/18/05
Eric Melin
Lawrence.com

No review available.

comment Comment
01/29/05
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

What’s amazing, especially after repeated viewings, is that both actors are playing such extremes, yet you’re never annoyed by them.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/15/05
Pete Croatto
Filmcritic.com

Consistently funny comedy of forced relationships.

comment Comment
01/05/05
Steve Crum
Kansas City Kansan

Will resonate with anyone who has been frustrated by the inconveniences of travel.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
08/28/04
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

John Hughes at the peak of his powers, with two masterful comedians at theirs.

comment Comment
05/19/04
Luke Y. Thompson
New Times

No review available.

comment Comment
12/18/03
Brian J. Arthurs
Beach Reporter (Southern California)

No review available.

comment Comment
08/22/03
John Esther
Pasadena Weekly

Planes, Trains and Automobiles showed that Hughes wasn't in fact some man-child searching for the reasons for his adulthood discontentment.

Full Review Source: Movie Views | comment Comment
08/07/03
Ryan Cracknell
Movie Views
 
 
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