The One Movie You Should Watch Every Thanksgiving Is Also One of the Greatest of All Time
By Chris Snellgrove | Published
There are many holiday movies centered around Halloween and Christmas, making it easy for movie fans to celebrate their favorite holidays. However, there are very few Thanksgiving-centric movies, especially ones you can watch with your whole family (trust me, not everyone wants to watch Eli Roth’s slasher. Thanksgiving while cutting the turkey).
Luckily, there’s a classic you can watch whenever you want to get into the Turkey Day spirit: Planes, trains and automobilesthe Thanksgiving classic now streaming on Prime Video.
Tickets please
The premise of Planes, trains and automobiles is that a stranded advertising executive struggles to get home for Thanksgiving after his flight is delayed. Following one crazy circumstance after another, he must travel with a talkative salesman as they try every possible method (planes, trains, and titular automobiles) to return to his family in Chicago. Along the way, their opposing personalities result in one unforgettable encounter after another during what quickly becomes the offbeat journey of their lives.
There are big names in Planes, trains and automobilesincluding Kevin Bacon (best known for Free from all ties) like a man who steals a taxi. Steve Martin (best known for Roxanne) plays an advertising executive with tight wounds whose severity hides a serious love for his family. John Candy (best known outside of this film for Space balls) plays the role of unflappable and avuncular salesman Del Griffith, eager to break through his new friend’s hardened exterior.
A Box Office Feast With Cranberry Sauce
When Planes, trains and automobiles was released, audiences flocked to theaters to experience this offbeat road trip classic. On a budget of $15 million, it grossed $49.5 million; despite this healthy profit margin, this holiday classic never got a true sequel. However, two different remakes have been announced in recent years (one starring Will Smith and Kevin Hart and one starring Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler), but there have been no updates on any of them since early 2023.
Unlike many modern comedies, Planes, trains and automobiles is almost universally loved by audiences and critics alike. It has a whopping 93 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics praising the film for its combination of great humor and genuinely heartfelt moments. They also applauded the perfect chemistry between Steve Martin and John Candy, both of whom turned this film into a holiday classic that its fans (myself included!) watch every year at Thanksgiving.
Iconic performances from Steve Martin and John Candy
When I first watched Planes, trains and automobilesI was very young and I especially appreciated the film for the over-the-top humor of John Candy (someone I adored after watching countless times Space balls and quoting his hilarious character). As I grew older and started my own family, however, I better appreciated the character of Steve Martin and his relentless quest to find his way back to his family at all costs.
Martin’s Neal Page looks like a humorless jerk (worthy of the star of The moronI guess) at first. As the film continued, it humanized his cold character as I realized that he (just like me) would do anything to return to those he loves.
It’s impossible to overstate the incredible chemistry between our lead actors, and their interactions remain the number one reason to watch (or rewatch for the millionth time) this timeless comedy classic. Both Martin and Candy are funny in their own right, usually stealing every scene from the movie they star in, like when John Candy turned a small cameo in Home Alone into an unforgettable cameo.
Putting Martin and Candy in scene after scene and letting them bounce off each other gives Planes, trains and automobiles a contagious charm. It’ll make you want to come back for a second helping (and a third and a fourth) of this delicious Thanksgiving treat.
Would you agree that Planes, trains and automobiles is both the best buddy comedy and the best Thanksgiving movie ever made, or is it a weird road trip you’d rather avoid altogether? The only way to find out is to stream this ’80s classic today and discover all its strange charms for yourself.
Afterward, you may spend the rest of your life wondering if you’ll be just a ride away discovering a new best friend, one who will change your life for the better.
