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Danny DeVito's direction is too broad to offer the kind of nastiness that would have made Throw Momma from the Train truly special, but DeVito's on-screen chemistry with co-star Billy Crystal makes this a smoothly entertaining comedy. Read critic reviews
Watch Throw Momma From the Train with a subscription on Max, rent on Apple TV, Vudu, or buy on Vudu.
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Larry (Billy Crystal), an author with a cruel ex-wife, Margaret (Kate Mulgrew), teaches a writing workshop where Owen (Danny DeVito), one of his students, is fed up with his domineering mother (Anne Ramsey). When Owen watches a Hitchcock classic that seems to mirror his own life, he decides to put the movie's plot into action and offers to kill Margaret, if Larry promises to murder his mom. Before Larry gets a chance to react to the plan, it seems that Owen has already sealed Margaret's fate.
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Director: Danny DeVito
Producer: Larry Brezner
Writer: Stu Silver
Release Date (Theaters): original
Release Date (Streaming):
Box Office (Gross USA): $54.4M
Runtime:
Distributor: Orion Pictures, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc.
Production Co: Orion Pictures
Sound Mix: Surround
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)
Billy Crystal and Danny DeVito team up for the off-the-wall comedy Throw Momma From the Train. After being framed for his ex-wife's disappearance, writing instructor Larry Donner is blackmailed by one of his students who wants Donner to kill his mother for him. Crystal and DeVito are great together and give a lot of personality to their characters. Yet, there are some problems with the tone as the film seems unsure of how dark to take the comedy. Additionally, there are some script problems (especially in the last act). Throw Momma From the Train is uneven and derails a little bit, but it's still a fun ride.
Ugh! And tie the director to the tracks! This is mindless dreck with a supremely annoying and unimaginative cast.
Ah come on. Not too many fans but it was amusing. DeVito and Crystal do a good job here and I think this remake benefits from being put forward as a comedy. It provides a nice counter to the Hitchcock version.
I don't think the more upbeat ending lives up to the darker and more intereting setup but DeVito, Crystal, and Ramsey are all great. I like the way the plot riffs on "Strangers on a Train", where the same plan is implemented by an depressed idiot rather that a evil genius.
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