Uncle Buck

Buck Russell (John Candy) is the Brother-In-Law from hell.

He's loud, rude, clumsy, uneducated, lazy and you suspect has a hankering for some really intense personal hygiene issues. But he's all they have....

Bob Russell (Brown) and his wife Cindy (Bromka) are sleeping one night, when they get a call to say that Cindy's father has had a heart attack. They need to go to Indianapolis quickly, but what about the kids? Miles (another early role for Macauley Culkin) and Maisie (Hoffmann) are far too young to take care of themselves and the elder daughter Tia (Kelly)... well let's just say she needs keeping an eye on. But their friends are unavalable and the only family member they could call is Buck. Even in her hour of greatest need, Cindy still needs convincing, but there is no other choice, so call they do.

Buck leaves his place (just the sort of place you'd think he would live in), gets in the car and smokes his way out to the suburbs and I mean smokes. The engine is so shot, a single backfire clears the ground for acres around the car.

Now, it's a while since Cindy last invited him out (they have moved since then, so he couldn't just drop in) and so he spends five minutes pounding on the wrong door at three in the morning before they finally call him over.

In the morning, the kids awake to find this strange big guy murdering all the food in the house and calling it 'Breakfast'. Introductions are made, but whilst the two youngest think Uncle Buck is swell, Tia is less impressed and begins a running battle to be independently obnoxious, even to the point of telling Buck's girlfriend Chanice (Amy Madigan) false rumours about Buck and the over-amorous neighbour Marcie (Laurie Metcalf). This causes Chanice to drive out for a confrontation that of course never happens and meanwhile Buck is getting increasingly concerned about Tia's boyfriend 'Bug', who he immediately recognises as a fellow sleaze-bag. Tia is only with him because it obviously upsets her mother so much.

Cue some solid head-to-head stuff, including Buck driving Tia to school each morning, Buck going into Maisie's school and tearing a strip off her way-too-serious Principal and Buck taking the kids Bowling, where one of his terrible friends tried (very, very unsuccessfully) to hit on Tia. Then there's the visit to the party.....

Ultimately Buck's persistence pays off and the kids all love him by the time their parents get back. Tia now thinks he's wonderful, especially as he has managed to grant her retribution on the now ex-sleazebag boyfriend Bug (with a five-iron and some well-aimed golfballs) and even improve the relationship she has with her mother.