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Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)
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Reviews Counted:42
Fresh:40
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
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Reviews for Planes, Trains and Automobiles
The film does have its scattered moments. But too often, the audience has as much reason as Del and Neal do to wonder where, if anywhere, they are going.
Producer-director-writer Hughes infuses his film with an appealing sense of sentiment and humanity -- not to mention many hilarious scenes.
A near-perfect comedy, featuring director John Hughes at the top of his over-sentimental game.
What distinguishes this film from others in the genre is the undercurrent of melancholy between the laughs.
Hughes has written and directed (he also produced) a perfectly balanced comedy that squeezes every last laugh out of a concept so simple you wouldn't think it could possibly succeed.
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.
Essentially, it's the stars' keenly observed nuances of character that make this comedy amiable enough.
The script and direction by Hughes ... amount to wobbly passes that Martin and Candy turn into touchdowns anyway.
Will resonate with anyone who has been frustrated by the inconveniences of travel.
It's a fine cinematic treat that doesn't demand much from a viewer, but gives back a lot, both in terms of laughter and good feeling.
certainly funny, but it is also a moving story that anyone who has ever recognized his or her own shortcomings will understand
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