Well I have just recently seen this movie in its entirety. It is one of those that I would always catch on in the middle or end and never get to finish. So I recorded it and made myself watch it all of the way through. Wonderful pairing with Steve Martin and John Candy as two unlikely guys that get stuck together trying to get home for Thanksgiving. Many misadventures later they make it and even form an unlikely friendship along the way. A bunch of funny lines and supporting characters in this 1987 film.
What are your fond memories of this flick?
Posted by Chris Fulmer (Member # 3197) on :
In a nutshell, pretty much everything. As far as I'm concerned, this is filmmaking at its absolute greatest. No film I've ever seen comes close in terms of pure entertainment, comedy, and pathos.
The acting is first rate, and the story is perfect in that sort of this could happen to you way. It's one of the deepest tragedies in show business that Hollywood kept screwing John Candy over and dumping him into wasteful projects that in hindsight are only worth watching because he's in it. But of all the people in the industry to take him seriously, I'm glad it was John Hughes. He knew true talent when he saw it, and always used Candy in this and subsequent projects to the best of his extraordianry capabilities. IN PT&A, Candy reached a well-deserved pinnacle. Forget Welles in Citizen kane. Forget Bogart in Casablanca. Even forget Leigh in Gone with the Wind. When Candy as Del collects himself after Neal let's loose with everything he's got at him in the motel and tells him that it hurts him to be called all that, but he won't change who he is just to please anyone else, that's the greatest and most touching moment in the history of cinema. And we the audience feel genuinely sorry for having laughed at every funny insult Neal threw at him. And Del Griffith is one of the movies' best characters, someone with genuine depth and heart whom you can truly care for, especially when we find out at the end all the scars he's been carrying.
Better yet, Steve Martin holds up just as beautifully as Neal. Although he had somewhat better luck with his roles than Candy, Neal Page is still his best perfomance too. Although he can get stinging with his putdowns at times, our sympathy remains with him at all times. After all, if we'd gone through everything he does, we'd probably explode with extreme profanity at the first person we saw too. All he wants is to get home to his family for the holidays. What makes this more naturalistic to me is that even though he works away from home, Neal's not a deadbeat dad, as he'd likely be portrayed today. He clearly loves his wife and kids, and when he admits he's missed his daughter's pageant he's completely sorry and regretful he did, unlike today's cinmeatic fathers, who would react to a similar situation with nothing but a truckload of raw excuses. And we grow with him as he realizes Del isn't quite as bad as he thought at first.
The humor is among the funniest ever written for the screen. When Hughes decided it's time to be funny, he's merciless with the jokes, hitting us with one right after another in sequence. It's not every film that can contain two of every man's worst nightmares (namely "Those aren't pillows!" and when the cabbie helps Neal up by his....well, you all know). And everything still holds up perfectly almost 20 years later (in fact, I think the Darryl Strawberry earring joke is funnier today after Strawberry threw his career down the drain). This is one that'll be relevant and entertaining fifty years from now and beyond. All in all, this is a movie experience like no other. And when it's all over and done with, you leave feeling a little better about yourself, which is what every great comedy should do for you. One of if not the best ever.
Posted by GoldTransAM (Member # 2973) on :
I love this movie especially the scene in the airport between Steve Martin and the car rental lady.
