Long before Chris Farley and David Spade took to the road
in Tommy Boy, Steve Martin and John Candy had a trip from hell in Planes, Trains & Automobiles in
which they are hilariously tortured, repeatedly, on various modes of
transportation throughout the Midwest. Steve Martin is the straight man again
in this movie, bouncing from rage to more rage usually because of John Candy,
although others also irritate him along the way. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie
and it’s great one -liners and sight gags. This is a typical Steve Martin
character, a man who is smarter than everyone else but has to put up with the
idiocy that surrounds him. (See also: Three Amigos, L.A. Story, Father of the
Bride, etc.) I can see how some people would be turned off by this, but I’ve
also enjoyed it and him, and this is no exception.
The movie starts out rather plausibly, as these things do,
with Steve Martin’s character hurrying to catch a flight from NYC to Chicago to
get home for Thanksgiving. After having trouble hailing a taxi, he finally
winds up at the airport in time to board his flight, where he’s sitting next to
John Candy, who just stole a cab from him (though not entirely on purpose.)
AWKWARD!
John Candy’s character is chatty, which irritates Steve
Martin, and when a snowstorm throws the plane off course to land in Kansas
City, Candy, a shower curtain hook salesman, helpfully offers to share his
hotel room with Martin, since all the hotels are now booked. What ensues is a
comedy of odd couple moments, topped by Martin accidentally using the water
that Candy’s socks are soaking in to brush his teeth.
More than once, Martin tries to escape, but the two
invariably end up on a train together, hitchhiking, and eventually renting a
car together in a frantic attempt to get home in time for the holiday. Driving
late one night, Candy ends up on the wrong side of the interstate and narrowing
avoids colliding with a big rig. They climb out of the car just before it
erupts in fire, a Candy cigarette having landed in the back seat.
This does not deter them! They continue in the car, somehow
still running, until a police office pulls them over because the car is not
road worthy, lacking a top, mirrors, most of the windows, and the trunk. They
manage to hitch a ride in the back of a freezer truck and wind up at Martin’s
home. He invites Candy, who we learn is a widower and talks to mask his
loneliness, to stay for the holiday. Everyone’s friends!
As I said, the movie has some very funny parts. When they
almost hit the big truck, the pair are grasping so tightly to the steering
wheel/dashboard (respectfully) that they have to peel their fingers from 10
holes in the dash and a mangled steering wheel. John Candy, after the pair lose
their wallets and money, sells his shower curtain hooks as jewelry to make
money, convincing passers-by of their stylish design. And of course, Steve
Martin has a typical movie freak out moment at the car rental place at a very
chipper attendant that I don’t want to spoil but contains very colorful and
inventive profanity. Fun for the whole family!
Planes, Trains and Automobiles: 5 of Patrick Swayze’s 6
abs.
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