If you haven’t seen this John Candy comedy then you have missed out and need to address that issue. Released in 1989 and made on a budget of $15m it went on to make $79.2m at the box-office which has to be seen as a success. So the bums on seats were there what about the critics as none of the other two were as pleased with this movie as I am so IMDb gave it a 7/10, whilst Rotten Tomatoes gave it a meagre 61%. The other stars of this move were Amy Madigan, Jean Louisa Kelly, Gaby Hoffmann, Macaulay Culkin, Jay Underwood, and Laurie Metcalf in a supporting role. Short intro as we launch into the plot.
Following Bob’s promotion he takes his family and movies to the Suburbs in Chicago with his wife (Cindy), older daughter Tia and Miles (around 8) and Maizy (around 6). They receive a phone call late one night from an Aunt in Indianapolis saying that Cindy’s father has had a heart attack. They make plans to leave straight away and there is no one else to look after the children they are forced to ask Buck, Bob’s unemployed brother. He was their last option for a reason. Buck likes a drink, lives in a small apartment, smoke cigars, betting on the horses, betting whilst bowling and drives a beat up old 1977 Mercury with the most amazing backfire everytime he turns the engine off. He leaves his girlfriend Chanice behind and heads out to look after Bob & Cindy’s kids. Bucks heart is in the right place even if his judgement isn’t. Buck instantly builds a repour with the two youngest but the teenage Mia is rebelling against her parents and see’s Buck as another target to her freedom. Her boyfriend is called Bug and Buck meets him and Buck quickly see’s through him and warns her that he is only after one thing. Over the days he starts to become accustomed to the house with many funny and silly scenes. Included removing a birthday clown that arrives at the house drunk. Defending the kids from a over bearing assistant principal at the school about Maizy’s behaviour. Settling in Mia see’s her chance for revenge and attempts to sabotage Bucks relationship with Chanice which leads to her coming over to Buck and splitting up after an argument. Mia uses this to escape the house and go to a house party with Bug which Buck has denied her permission from. With Mia gone and the kids left in the house Buck begs Chanice to sit the kids whilst he goes to search for Mia. What could possible happened with a teenage girl at a house party anyway. Well Uncle Buck is on the case.
This is a charming and amusing movie, throughout. It weaves the comedy into the story and even with the dramatic conclusion which all comedies have to have it does so with the same humour it had had throughout the movie. A lot of comedies have this where they go funny scene funny scene funny scene then suddenly there is a death threatening thing happening before the rescue and everyone lives happily ever after. Well this one has a story running through the movie and the comedy is weaved into that which makes this work so much more than many comedies out there. I love John Candy and he will always bring a smile and many cases a laugh out loud point to a movie even when he is only around for a small part of it for example home alone with the Polka Band that the mum hitches a ride with. He is just funny. This Uncle Buck character was good enough to spawn a TV series which I know nothing about and never heard of so couldn’t of been much of a success but this movie is and you should give it a go.
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