Movie Review Monday: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
Welcome to another edition of Movie Review Monday!
This week's film is 1987's Planes, Trains, & Automobiles from director John Hughes and starring John Candy and Steve Martin.
The premise of the movie is the trials and roadblocks Candy and Martin's characters experience trying to get home for Thanksgiving. It's a funny and heartfelt movie that completely hinges on Candy and Martin. They play off each other well with Martin playing the straight guy to Candy's jovial nature.
The story is largely timeless as it is something we can all relate to with the universal frustrations of traveling. I also really enjoy the aspect of the film of the power of people helping each other. Neither character in the film would get home without the kindness of a stranger and just trusting your fellow traveler. I know how hard traveling can be so after watching this movie, I hope I can do the same for someone sometime to make their life a little easier. I also want to tease that there is a unique hook to this movie that gets revealed towards the end. It colors the movie in a totally different way and I had no idea it was coming. It's a great part of the story and it made the whole experience even better for me.
This film is silly, simple, fun, wholesome, and overall a great watch for the whole family. It is perfect for the holiday season so I recommend it to folks looking for something in this wheelhouse.
Check out Planes, Trains, & Automobiles streaming right now on Netflix!