Planes, Trains and Automobiles is a 1987 American comedy film written, produced, and directed by John Hughes. The film stars Steve Martin as Neal Page, a high-strung marketing executive, who meets Del Griffith, played by John Candy, an eternally optimistic, outgoing, overly talkative, and clumsy shower curtain ring salesman. They share a three-day odyssey of misadventures trying to get Neal home to Chicago from New York City in time for Thanksgiving with his family. The film marked a widely noticed change in the repertoire of John Hughes. It was greeted with critical acclaim upon release, a revelation in that Hughes was considered a teen angst filmmaker. While some reviewers were critical of the gushy tones and silliness seen in the movie, which affected the ability to convey emotional range, most applauded the humor itself.
