What he really wanted was to spend Thanksgiving with his family. What he got was three days with the turkey.
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.
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Character
Comic, classical in form, effortless and resolved.
- gravecomic
- classical in formformally daring
- effortlessdemanding
- resolvedopen-ended
- warmbleak
Who loves it, who doesn't
27 profiled raters. Loved most by The Archivists; disliked most by The Provocateurs.
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Answer first; then see how everyone, and your circle, split.
“Is Steve Martin the best thing in Planes, Trains and Automobiles?”
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“Is this John Hughes's best work?”
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“Is it the best comedy film of its decade?”
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A yes-or-no question, answered from what people wrote here, on TMDB and on Wikipedia. Never made up.
Reviews
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Reviews on TMDB
Written by TMDB members; each links to the original. Not part of Tastebuds's numbers.
- John Chardon TMDB · Jun 20199/10
How about those Bears? Planes, Trains and Automobiles is written, produced and directed by John Hughes. It stars Steve Martin and John Candy. Music is by Ira Newborn and cinematography by Donald Peterman. Marketing man Neal Page (Martin) is in a last ditch dash to get from New York to Chicago in time for the family Thanksgiving dinner. Unfortunately obstacles halt his every advancement, the biggest of which is the man who fate has decreed is his companion for the trip; Del Griffith (Candy), a larger than life shower ring salesman whose outlook on life is considerably different to Neal's. If you haven't seen it yet? Then what is your excuse? You owe it to yourself to let this wonderful film into your life. John Hughes pitches two of America's then biggest comedy stars together and puts them on a trip where everything that can go wrong, does! Cue chaos with the methods of transport in the title. Yet as funny as the mishaps are, and they are, with a number of events being things many of us can associate with, they would be nothing without the expert characterisations. Both as performed by a never better Martin and Candy, but also as written by Hughes. Neal Page is anal retentive, snob
Read the whole review on TMDB - r96skon TMDB · Dec 20208/10
Entertaining 1987 flick from John Hughes. <em>'Planes, Trains and Automobiles'</em> is an enjoyable watch, pure and simple. The pairing of Steve Martin and John Candy is a great one, with both holding their own and bringing a lot of humour to events. Away from those two, you also have interesting bit part roles for Kevin Bacon and Michael McKean. The plot is one that could've got repetitive, but the film keeps it interesting for the whole 93 minutes. I will say, not that it's an all that noteworthy thing, that it has more (overly?) dramatic moments than I was anticipating, especially at the end. I was expecting a flat-out comedy, but the additional heart fits in well enough. It's a film 100% worth watching, if only for the humour of the two leads; there are some funny gags in there.
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Cast
- Steve MartinNeal Page
- John CandyDel Griffith
- Laila RobinsSusan Page
- Michael McKeanState Trooper
- Dylan BakerOwen
- Kevin BaconTaxi Racer
- Olivia BurnetteMarti Page
- Carol BruceJoy Page
- Diana DouglasPeg
- Martin FerreroMotel Clerk
Crew
- John HughesDirector
- John HughesScreenplay
- Donald PetermanDirector of Photography
- Ira NewbornOriginal Music Composer
- Paul HirschEditor
- John HughesProducer
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Pairings
Companions we picked from the closest works, and how to take them.
Similar in taste
Closest on the same fourteen dimensions, from everything scored on Tastebuds Other media included when they land close.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith 194185% alikeBoth comic, classical in form, warm.
The Awful Truth 193782% alikeBoth comic, classical in form, effortless.
Mr. Mom 198380% alikeBoth classical in form, comic, effortless.
The Birdcage 199679% alikeBoth comic, classical in form, resolved.
Sixteen Candles 198479% alikeBoth classical in form, comic, effortless.
Clueless 199578% alikeBoth classical in form, comic, resolved.
It Happened One Night 193478% alikeBoth classical in form, comic, resolved.
Sons of the Desert 193378% alikeBoth comic, classical in form, resolved.
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air 199083% alikeTelevision · Both comic, classical in form, effortless.
The Dick Van Dyke Show 196177% alikeTelevision · Both comic, classical in form, resolved.
Often watched with
Recommendations from TMDB. Opening one adds it to Tastebuds
