John Candy month: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

A retrospective by Brooks Rich

I decided to extend John Candy month for a bit as I had some personal issues come up. So just wrapping up some film I wanted to cover. Works for me. Just an excuse to keep talking about a master like Candy.

Steve Martin is Neil Page, a marketing executive who is flying from New York to Chicago for Thanksgiving. While trying to hail a cab he trips over a large trunk and has his taxi stolen by Del Griffith, the immortal John Candy, who ends up being one of Neil's seat mates on the plane. Bad weather in Chicago strands them in Wichita. Determined to make up for ruining Neil's travel plans, Del swears to get Neil home to Chicago in time for Thanksgiving. Hilarity ensues.

I mean come on. Who doesn't love Planes, Trains, and Automobiles? This is Candy's best film and I don't think that's a hot take. Sure some people might vote for Uncle Buck but not me. My vote is for this masterpiece of '80s comedy. It is also John Hughes best film and one of the best road trip movies of all time if not the best. There is a planned remake of it in the works and that is a useless idea. There is no need to remake this movie. Stop development now. Do not touch this. There's nothing to be done in a new version of this. The original still holds up.

I don't want to take anything away from Steve Martin. He is fantastic as Neil Page and is the perfect type of straight man he made a career out of playing. His highlight is the scene where he goes off on an overly friendly midwest car rental agent. Her rosy demeanor fades and she tells him he's fucked in one of the best line deliveries of the movie. Fantastic.

But the star of the show is Candy as Del Griffith. He is so good in this and I don't think there was another actor who could have given Del as much heart as Candy does. Yeah he's an annoying blabbermouth and one of those guys you'd hate to be stuck sharing a flight with. But there is a charm to him. Del is not mean spirited and is honest in his attempts at friendship with Del. He means well even if he can't help but drive Neil crazy. No one else in the world could have played Del. He is almost tailor made for Candy.

There's talks of a remake with Will Smith and Kevin Hart and dear God no. Do not touch this. The film is perfect. There's nothing a remake can offer. Do not remake this movie. And if you have never seen this correct that immediately. This is one of the best films in Candy's filmography. Go watch it. Now.

Comments

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

A retrospective by Brooks Rich Let's kick off the spooky season with a bona fide classic. I love the horror genre, but not much really scares or creeps me out. Most horror films I just watch and enjoy. However, 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' is one of those that really gets under my skin, and not just because the Sawyer family are eating people. The way Tobe Hooper shoots the film gives it an almost documentary feel. If you have never seen 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre,' you should probably fix that immediately. Do I need to explain what it's about? A group of '70s kids is driving across Texas in a van and runs afoul of the Sawyer family, including the man himself, Leatherface. It's a classic of the horror genre and one of the pioneers of the '70s and '80s horror boom. The film has a reputation for being sickeningly bloody and violent, but that is not true. It's essentially a bloodless film, which makes it even more horrifying. Most of the violence...

Forgotten Film Friday: Absolute Power

Clint Eastwood stars as Luther Whitney, a jewel thief who works in the Washington DC area. One night while he is stealing from a mansion he is forced to hide in a secret compartment with a two way mirror. From there he observes a sexual rezendevous with the wife of a powerful man and the President of the United States Alan Richmond (Gene Hackman) Suddenly the president gets aggressive and while defending herself the woman is shot to death by two Secret Service agents. Luther manages to get away with a letter opener the woman stabbed the president with. At first Luther plans to flee the country. But when he is disgusted by a statement the president makes, Luther decides to expose the crime. I miss these kind of films. The nineties was a great time for thrillers exactly like this. They are not the flashiest films but they are also not obsessed with big action scenes. It's all plot and character with them. Sure this plot might be a little out there but Eastwood makes it work. He's...

John Candy month: Summer Rental

A retrospective by Brooks Rich Air traffic controller Jack Chester (John Candy) is given paid time off when he nearly causes two airline disasters. He takes his family down to Florida for a vacation. Hijinks ensue because its '80s comedy and Candy ends up challenging a pompous Richard Crenna to a yacht race to close out the summer. This is a movie that has been forgotten to time in the grand scheme of Candy's career. Even with Carl Reiner directing it does have the same name recognition as some of Candy's other works. But I think it's a solid entry in his filmography. He plays a great everyman who we have no problem rooting for. The slobs versus snobs relationship he has with Crenna works like a charm and he genuinely seems like a good father and husband. Candy was always great at playing both the everyman and the aloof goofball. Sometimes he'll even play both. His character of Jack Chester in this is a good example of that. At times Jack is the goofy comic relief...

Cinema Basement

Search This Blog