Let’s get this out of the way first: I know that the whole point of Planes, Trains and Automobiles is to watch these two characters annoy each other and get through painstakingly inconvenient situations. However, as I watched it for the first time, there was one scene in this movie that’s considered one of the ‘80s best that just about sent me packing. That’s right, one of the choices John Candy’s Del makes was so unforgivable to me that I’m still not over it.
The Scene In Planes, Trains And Automobiles Involving John Candy’s Del That Disgusted Me
Obviously, everything that could go wrong in Planes, Trains and Automobiles does, and it all happens due to bad luck, terrible timing, poor choices and/or what I’d assume is the universe being out to get these guys. However, one problem I simply could not get over because of how easily avoidable it was, was Del making an absolute mess of the bathroom while Steve Martin’s Neal was showering.
In the short amount of time Neal spends in the shower, Del manages to absolutely trash the bathroom. His toiletry bag explodes on the counter, and there are myriad medicines all over it – including what appears to be Pepto Bismol, a gas medication and a giant empty bottle of mouthwash.
Then, to make matters approximately one million times worse, Del makes the bathroom all wet and uses all the towels with the exception of one (1) washcloth.
Poor Neal was left to dry himself off with a tiny cloth not meant for that, and then he had to try to navigate the wet bathroom of disgustingness to get out. Talk about horrendous!
If I Were In Neal’s Shoes, I Would Have Legitimately Run Away
Now, Planes, Trains and Automobiles is great. I get why it’s one of John Candy’s best movies, and I see why it’s one of Steve Martin’s finest films. However, I’d be lying if I said this bathroom scene didn’t almost turn me off of it.
I didn’t see how Del could redeem himself after this. I know, objectively, he does worse (and life-threatening) things in this movie. However, this instance was the most realistic “mishap” and easily the most inconsiderate moment in the whole film.
A lot of things that happen in this flick are hilariously out of control or quirky issues. However, this one was just gross. If I were Neal, there’s no way I would have stayed in that hotel with Del, let alone shared a bed, let alone continued this trip.
I would have, I kid you not, run away if a person I just met and agreed to share a hotel with because we were stuck took over every inch of space in the bathroom with their icky belongings, while I was also using the bathroom. That is an invasion of privacy, inconsiderate, and it could have been avoided…easily. He could have waited, and he could have kept the bathroom clean. It’s literally not that hard.
As you can see, I’m quite worked up about this, and haven’t stopped thinking about this very short scene in the iconic movie. However, I stand by it. What Del did was gross, and Neal should have left then. Thankfully, he didn’t, though, and we got a great movie because of it, and they got what wound up being a pretty nice friendship by the end of this deeply unfortunate trip.
Now, to watch this gross scene and the rest of this genuinely funny movie, you can stream Planes, Trains and Automobiles with a Paramount+ subscription.
