Planes, Trains and Automobiles

1987 "What he really wanted was to spend Thanksgiving with his family. What he got was three days with the turkey."
7.6| 1h33m| R| en| More Info
Released: 26 November 1987 Released
Producted By: Paramount Pictures
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
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An irritable marketing executive, Neal Page, is heading home to Chicago for Thanksgiving when a number of delays force him to travel with a well meaning but overbearing shower curtain ring salesman, Del Griffith.

Genre

Comedy

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Director

John Hughes

Production Companies

Paramount Pictures

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Planes, Trains and Automobiles Audience Reviews

Laikals The greatest movie ever made..!
Acensbart Excellent but underrated film
Joanna Mccarty Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.
Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable
view_and_review Every once in a while I will rewatch a movie from my youth. Planes, Trains and Automobiles happened to be on so I thought I'd check it out. From what I remembered it was a good movie.Yes it was.Maybe it was the nostalgia of it or maybe it was just that good but I found myself guffawing at Neal (Steve Martin) and Del (John Candy). It's hard to believe that the movie is now 30 years old. It's Thanksgiving time and Neal and Del are begrudgingly (from Neal's point of view anyway) paired together on a hellish trip from New York to Chicago in which Murphy's Law fully applies. Hilarity ensues as Neal is pushed to the brink of insanity by all of the mishaps and Del--the oblivious, jolly fat man.Although Neal and Del weren't the original odd couple I would venture to say that they were the first road trip odd couple.
witster18 PTAA is undoubtedly a Holiday Classic in every sense of the phrase. Maybe not as wonderful as "It's a WOnderful Life", but Steve Martin and John Candy really make the most out of this. Of course, this is a Thanksgiving movie and not a Christmas movie, but like the two Holidays, they kind of go hand-in-hand.Written by the late, great John Hughes, PTAA isn't necessarily AS well-written or dialog-driven as his other work, but the film does take full advantage of the physical comedy of Martin and the sincerity and heart of Candy. It IS still well-written, don't get me wrong, just not as great as some other Hughes works in this aspect.It's a road-trip movie. The film jumps from transportation medium to transportation medium, in order of the title.Throughout the film, the two men find a better understanding of the Holiday Season and all that comes with it. Martin is shown/reminded what IS the most important part of his life, and given in Candy, everything that he takes for granted. There are many classic moments in the film. The Braidwood Inn provides 3 or 4 of them. Martin's "F-Bomb" rampage later in the film is another high-point.The film isn't perfect. I know no film is, but PTAA, imo, fails to capitalize on the ending by cutting it short. Just a little more family interaction at the end would have gone a long way. Maybe even some more/explained help for Del. We assume that this is what happened, but the serious emotion of the film takes place in a very small window, and is subsequently a tad understated. Just a little dialog like "Del's gonna stay a while", or a short sitting at the Thanksgiving table would have been a nice addition to the film.Steve Martin really shows his range in this film.I highly recommend Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, and not just during the holiday season. Soft-8 for me. On the Hughes Hierarchy it's a touch better than say Uncle Buck, but not the masterpiece of a Sixteen Candles or Breakfast Club.
studioAT Aside from the really unnecessary scene that involves a lot of swearing this is a very good film, from the pen of the much missed John Hughes.John Candy (Hughes's muse after Molly Ringwald) and Steve Martin are the perfect comedy team, and their antics are very funny. There are some lovely set pieces, and some interesting cameos along the way too.It's not without its slow moments, but when this film is good its very good.Regularly touted as one of the best films of the 80's I couldn't agree more.
Hitchcoc How sad that we lost John Candy so young. He was one of those comedians who had a gentle nature but could be hilarious. He never had to resort to cheap laughs but relied on physical comedy. Steve Martin is without a doubt one of the funniest people to walk this earth, but he is also one of our best actors, and I mean best. He is creative in his acting and wears his heart on his sleeve. He is also, of course, a fine musician. These two guys pair up in this movie. We cringe all the way through because short of getting them killed, they are assaulted at every turn with the worst luck we can imagine. What ensues, despite Candy's character being responsible for most of the misery, is a real love story. It will make you think of why we fragile humans need each other because the world isn't a kind place for many. See this if you have a chance.