The 1987 American comedy, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, directed by John Hughes opens up to Neil Page, portrayed by Steve Martin, at work waiting for his boss to dismiss everyone so he can catch his flight to Chicago for the Thanksgiving holiday to be with his family. The problem is, so is everyone else. Catching a taxi to the airport is next to impossible, just goes as far as paying a lawyer for the cab he hailed only for it to be stolen right from under him. He goes as far as to chase the cab and open the door mid-ride scaring the occupant inside: Del Griffith. It takes Neil longer than necessary to get home due to many hilarious circumstances getting in his way, the biggest being Del Griffith, portrayed by John Candy, who annoys him to no end at the beginning. As the film progresses, Neil slowly warms up to Del due to his good-natured personality. According to Del, what you see is what you get with him. Try as these two characters might to go their separate ways, fate keeps bringing them back together with a series of unfortunate events.
This film uses the comedic devices of physical comedy and surreal comedy for comedic effect. The situations that the two characters are put through alone is hilarious, it's just too much. How can one person, Neil Page, be so unlucky in his trials of finding a way home.
The director, John Hughes, is known for directing films that have some sort of underlying message. I predict that the underlying message of this film is to cherish your family because you can't get those moments back. Neil Page is shown working in another state, and in his trials to get home he misses his daughter's Thanksgiving pageant at school, a moment he never intended to miss, but due to unforeseen circumstances, has. I think that John Hughes has written and directed this sweet hilarious comedy for a reason, I think it has an underlying message. The message having to due with family, created friendships, and unfortunate events.
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