Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987) on Netflix
Neal Page, an advertising executive in New York, wants to reach his Chicago family for Thanksgiving. A snowstorm and a shower curtain ring salesman, Del Griffith, keep getting in his way.
- Netflix3.8/5
- IMDb7.6/10182,192 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes93%
Trailer
Plot summary
Neal Page, an advertising executive in New York City, wants to be home in Chicago for Thanksgiving, two days away. A snowstorm is closing in, and rush hour makes a taxi nearly impossible; when he finally bribes his way into one, another man takes it. At LaGuardia Airport his flight is delayed, and he meets Del Griffith, a talkative shower curtain ring salesman who was the man in the cab. Neal's first-class seat is reassigned to coach, beside Del. The blizzard forces their plane to land in Wichita, Kansas, where the two are stranded overnight. With only one room available, the two share a double bed, and Neal grows frustrated with Del's talkative manner.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Rewrites by Hughes and improvisation between Martin and Candy resulted in an initial cut that ran nearly four hours, before being substantially shortened for the theatrical release.
- The cover of “Everytime You Go Away” heard over the final scene and the credits is by Blue Room. Hughes had planned to use Paul Young's well-known hit version, and Young approved of the plan and wanted it included, but the record company denied him the rights.
SPOILER
One key subplot was cut, in which Neal's wife does not believe him and suspects that he is with another woman. Its removal is why she is so happy to see Del at the end of the film.- In an interview Hughes described a disastrous trip from Chicago to New York City that he experienced while working as an advertising executive, which apparently inspired the movie.
- A special instrumental version of “Power to Believe” by The Dream Academy, which the band recorded at Hughes's request, is used extensively in the film as Del's unofficial theme.
