cricketbat Planes, Trains and Automobiles is, without a doubt, the best odd-couple cross-country-trip Thanksgiving-themed movie around. Steve Martin and John Candy work very well as a comedic duo and they help create a story that is both hilariously ridiculous and heartwarmingly touching. This is a must-see film.

Evan Wessman (CinematicInceptions) This movie is in large part a I think a major reason that road-trip comedies aren't really a thing anymore. Now, that probably makes it sound like I'm going to trash this movie in the rest of the review. But really when you have a road trip comedy as good as this one, it's pretty much impossible to top it, especially because this is a self-professed road trip movie without any extra fluff or additional elements. I sincerely hope that nobody tries to re-make this movie, because this is very much a sort of movie that would get re-booted in the current marketplace. Unrelated to this movie, I'm going to go on a brief discourse/rant about reboots, so you may want to skip this paragraph. If you're going to re-boot a movie, re-boot a bad movie that had potential to be good. If you re-boot a good movie, chances are you're only going to make it as good as the original, it's not going to be better. Karate Kid was a solid movie, it deserved to stand as its own thing. Same with some of these Disney animated classics that are getting live-action re-boots. The originals are good. In many cases movies like Ocean's Eleven and 3:10 to Yuma and even the 1980's Scarface are better as re-boot because the originals weren't fabulous and/or they waited a good long time to re-boot them. So please, don't re-boot a movie like this or like Groundhog Day. Do it with something that could've been much better like 21 or Cloud Atlas or even the Hunt for Red October. Sorry not sorry about that.There are aspects of this movie that feel dated, contrived, and somewhat predictable, but all of these flaws are pretty forgivable I think. Considering the standards that comedies are usually held to, I'd say this does much better than most. It's true that we know intuitively that John Candy and Steve Martin are not actually parting ways the couple of times they do, just like we know that one mode of transportation or another will not get them all the way to Chicago. However, John Hughes' comedy writing coupled with some great performances keep us entertained enough that anything that seems implausible is forgiven. And it's still funny when John Candy just keeps on running back into Steve Martin. Hughes does a really good job giving his movies, and this one in particular, some good emotional cores that don't detract one bit from the laughs. Breakfast Club is the only of his movies that has more emotional stakes to it, but this I think is Hughes' funniest. It's kind of too bad that the days of John Hughes and Mrs. Doubtfire type of comedies is past, but they did have their day and for better or for worse don't really fit in today's marketplace.I would recommend to anyone who likes 80's comedies, because it is one of the best. I doubt it will be many people's favorite movie, but it is somebody's favorite and will rank high on a lot of personal lists. It does have an R-rating because of the one scene, but otherwise it's a Goonies-level family movie. If your kid knows the f-word you can show this to them and if not, you can just skip over the one scene if you know when it is. If you're not huge on 80's comedy or are not familiar with it, this could changed whatever opinions you have. Yes, there are cheesy and old-fashioned things about it, but it should still entertain you for a solid 90 minutes. Overall Rating: 7.7/10

billybillgratie I don't know how to describe the love I have for this movie. It's a rare film that I think we could collectively as a society call a 'perfect comedy' It doesn't matter what your age is, you will be on the floor literally laughing until your stomach hurts.John Candy was one of the great treasures of the past and him paired with Steve Martin is just too perfect for words. It's a film I revisit every year and I sincerely recommend you do the same.

EBJ ​'PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES' - 1987Directed by John HughesStarring Steve Martin AND John CandyPlot Overview: ​Desperate to get home for Thanksgiving, Neal Page(Steve Martin) enlists the help of a friend he met at an airport, Del Griffith(John Candy) to transport him home, using whatever means necessary!American or not, I can understand the appeal for this movie. It's fun, it's quirky, it's got a simple structure and it's got two lovable characters. I didn't know what to expect from this movie but I will say it pleasantly surprised me. It's fun, it's warm and it's uplifting, and what more can you want from a holiday movie? Even if I don't celebrate that holiday.The story for this movie is deceptively simple. On the surface it's just a two guys trying to get home but if you look closer, it's a story of friendship, and acceptance and responsibility. The surface level simplicity of this movie is part of why it is so effective. I love the way Hughes handles the fear that every single human alive has about being sat next to someone they cannot stand on some form of transport. The poetic way of handling that and making you look on the bright side of it is genuinely incredible. And then there is the ending. I won't spoil what happens but needless to say I really enjoyed it. The film's primary strength is easily the performances and chemistry from our two leads: Steve Martin and John Candy. Both men are powerhouses in the fields of comedy and both men do fantastic jobs in each of their respective roles. Neal Page(Steve Martin)'s character arc was 100% authentic and I really liked it. We see his character evolve over the course of the movie and I really liked it. Del(John Candy) doesn't really have an arc perse but I still really liked his character and thought he was a fun addition to the cast.If I was to same one main flaw with the movie, it'd be the rough middle. Not gonna lie, I was bored for a fair amount of this movie, primarily the middle portion. Not that it was aggressively bad, it just didn't entertain me in the slightest and I was honestly willing for it to come to an end.Aside from this one but pretty daunting flaw, I definitely had fun with this movie and I do recommend that you see it. It's got some good jokes, a deceptively good story and some really fun characters. It won't enlighten you but it will certainly entertain you and warm you up. I'll rate Planes, Trains and Autombiles 7 '******* CARS!' out of 10!