Planes, Trains and Automobiles | | Cast : | Steve Martin, John Candy | | Director : | John Hughes | | Studio : | Paramount Home Video | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby | | Released Date : | November 25, 1987 | | DVD Released Date : | January 08, 2002 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), English (Original Language), English (Subtitled) | | Audience Rating : | R (Restricted) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | May 24, 2005 | | Summary | John Candy...What a legacy he left... | Content
 | This movie is about one of my top favorites: it has joy, sadness, brilliant one liners, excellent humor and above all: true human spirit. Again a classic that some movies of now should take as an exemple of what quality is... |
| Rating | | | Date | April 06, 2005 | | Summary | 'Planes Trains&Automobiles'(Paramount)Running time:92 min. | Content
| Total madcap comedy about an upper-class EASILY annoyed business man,Neal Page(Steve Martin)accidently meeting up with stooge-like bumbler Del Griffith(John Candy-R.I.P.)who make such a comedic pair,it's almost unreal!Page is trying desperately to get home,to Chicago to be with his family on Thanksgiving.The two experience some unbelievable hardships that would about drive anyone ELSE insane.My favorite scenes are:1)When the two rent a car to drive after dusk as Page demands Griffith to keep on his shoes to avoid the stench of his feet and after that Griffith drives as me 'mocks' the Ray Charle's tune "Do The Mess Around".It's a scream! 2)When they're in the motel bed together BEFORE realizing they're with one another and 3)Towards the end,the heart warming moment when the two manage to arrive in Chicago and Griffith confesses he has no home and Page invites him to his house for the holiday.A sappy moment in movie history.A must-see.Recommended. |
| Rating | | | Date | March 09, 2005 | | Summary | Still Funny And Then Some...Ebert May Be Right | Content
| Film critic Roger Ebert just included this movie as one of his top favorites in his new compendium, "The Great Movies II", and you should certainly read his analysis to hear from a true aficionado. For me personally, I continue to be surprised at how much I laugh when I see this movie. I thought that by now, surely the comic sight gags and the casting of Steve Martin and the late John Candy would automatically make this a candidate for a 1987 time capsule. Instead, I have to agree with Ebert and say this film has only grown over time, The laughs are still there, but so is a somewhat more dramatic undercurrent that I likely ignored the first time I saw it. Directed and written by John Hughes previously known for his teen angst comedies like "The Breakfast Club" and "Pretty in Pink", it's really a classic anti-buddy picture as two mismatched individuals are thrown together and of course, suffer one bizarre misadventure after another as they try to make it home to Chicago for Thanksgiving.
Although you would think it would have more in common with Neil Simon's "The Odd Couple", the plot actually reminds me much more of Simon's "The Out-of-Towners", and anyone familiar with that film will have a good idea of what will happen to them. They spend a night in a cramped hotel room sleeping in the same bed, endure customer-indifferent rental car clerks, suffer through a series of vehicle breakdowns, and watch one of their last hopes literally go up in smoke. As persnickety salesman Neal Page, Martin seems to be on a constant simmer just ready to boil at the most inopportune times. Candy plays the obnoxious Del Griffith, a shower curtain ring salesman armed with an endless supply of dumb jokes and pointless anecdotes. That both manage to make their respective characters likeable is a testament to their appeal as comic actors. Martin is able to elicit empathy for a man uncomfortable with unpredictable circumstances. Candy goes beyond the obvious buffoon to reveal a vulnerable, lonely man made even more so by the holiday season. There is a particularly touching moment when he silently expresses his character's swelling hurt as Neal berates him for his unfunny stories. But it's really the comedy scenes that make this movie truly memorable, the best one involving Del's lip-synching of "The Mess Around" behind the wheel of car he is driving in the wrong direction. The ending is somewhat mawkish, but it doesn't ruin a comedy that deserves to be seen again and enjoyed. Still highly recommended. |
| Rating | | | Date | February 10, 2005 | | Summary | Hilarious, could watch it everyday and still laugh | Content
| For starters, the editorial reviews are absolutely 100% wrong and false. The movie is not just "intermitttenly funny" as one "proffesional" says, it is constant non stopping laughter funny. Hughes does a great job at making everyone laugh at EVERY scene that is meant to be funny, and still tie in a great story about family, love, friendship, dedication, and many other themes. Steve Martin and the late John Candy were absolutely great on-screen together in this film, and it truly is sad that John Candy has passed because this movie showed his true talent and potential. Overall, P.T.&A. is an outstanding movie that will leave you crying with laughter, crying with sadness, and crying with happiness all at some point throughout the movie...not many movies can say that. |
| Rating | | | Date | January 21, 2005 | | Summary | Good Pairing of Comic Legends | Content
| When John Candy passed prematurely in 1994 it caused me more than a momentary sadness. From his days on "SCTV" to his film work Candy could elicit laughs just from his presence and inner warmth even in the lamest of vehicles. Candy had a prolific film career, that's not to say a consistent one ("Who's Harry Crumb?","Nothing But Trouble"). His constant film work might have been his way for portending his early demise. Among the dross Candy made a number of good films. I'm still waiting for my personal favorite, "Only the Lonely" with Maureen O'Hara playing his mother get a DVD issue. Fortunately for us, "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles" is also one of his better films. The film concerns two disparate individuals, buttoned-down family man Neil Page(Steve Martin) and shower-ring salesman Del Griffith trying to get home for Thanksgiving. Through a series of coincidences or just Del attaching himself to Neil they end up traveling and boarding together throughout their sojourn. There are any number of hilarious scenes("Those aren't pillows!"). My personal favorite has to be one where the pair, bereft of cash, attempt to barter with a motel clerk for a room. Neil presents a valuable Swiss watch as colatteral. Del in turn brandishes a Casio. Alas, this is also a John Hughes film. Despite alot of inspired comic anarchy that preceded it, Hughes injects a Norman Rockwell sentimental moment at the end. That quibble aside, "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles" is timeless comedy and a great opportunity to see these comic legends interact. |
|
Picture 01 (20)
