MamaGravity good back-story, and good acting

Beanbioca As Good As It Gets

Glucedee It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

Nicole I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

classicsoncall In the best tradition of a twisted Hitchcock, this is a disturbingly funny movie that takes the "Strangers on a Train" concept and stands it right on it's head. I have to say, I get a kick out of Anne Ramsey, but ever since I saw her in 1985's "Goonies", I've always believed that was really a man underneath her characters. Calling her ugly wouldn't be a very nice thing to say, but boy, she sure does make you take a step back.Devito and Crystal play off each other quite well here, this was back in their heyday as comedic actors. All Devito has to do is show up actually, he's just plain funny to look at; the voice and mannerisms are an added bonus. It's been quite a while since I saw this film the first time, so hearing that piercing, guttural "Oweeeen" was a perfect way to get me back in the mood for watching this flick again.Okay, so it's not even in the same league as Professor Donner's (Crystal) literature class, but you can have some fun with this one. There's even a twist ending of sorts when it's revealed that Donner's wife (Kate Mulgrew) isn't really dead. So it's actually a happy ending movie after all if you're a clever enough writer to spin it that way.

Robert J. Maxwell This is a rip off but at least it's a shameless rip off. Director DeVito has Professor Billy Crystal talk Danny DeVito the actor into "going to see a Hitchcock movie" if he wants to learn about motives. DeVito sees the scene in "Strangers on a Train" in which the two stars agree, more or less, to swap murders.The reason DeVito wants to learn about motives and how they function in police procedures is that he wants to murder his foul-mouthed, ugly, domineering mother and get away with it. He can't, of course, because he so obviously hates her. But, as in "Strangers on a Train," he decides to swap murders with Crystal. He'll kill Crystal's hated wife in return for Crystal's killing De Vito's mother.It doesn't work out. One thing after another goes wrong. The things that go wrong are supposed to be funny but most of them aren't. There's an abundance of slapstick, with people running back and forth in a frenzy, people hiding from others, people falling off ships, people hanging by their heels from a train.DeVito is a smart guy and a clever director sometimes. Anyone who directed the black comedy "The War of the Roses" can't be completely clumsy. But he's pretty awkward here, given to obvious shots of himself approaching the camera pop-eyed and wearing black gloves when attempting to snuff Crystal's wife. It's almost embarrassing.Crystal, too, can be extremely amusing as the ordinary guy swept up into some nightmarish scenario, as he was in "Analyze This!" I'd put off watching this because the trailers all featured the same shot. DeVito and Crystal are at the table. DeVito shovels scrambled eggs into their plates, then hits Crystal over the head with the frying pan. BONK! And Crystal falls down. I figured, "If this is the best it's got, I might as well skip it." It's almost the best it's got.

Michael_Elliott Throw Momma from the Train (1987) *** (out of 4) Dark comedy is a take off Hitchcock's STRANGERS ON A TRAIN. A writer (Billy Crystal) has his idea for a book stolen by his ex-wife who turns it into a major hit. He wishes he could kill her but his student (Danny DeVito) takes his talk serious and kills her in exchange that the writer kills his nagging mother (Anne Ramsey). With the talent involved this film should have been a whole lot better and even though there are countless flaws, in the end I can't help but find the film mildly entertaining, if disappointing. I think the biggest problem with the film is that there's way too much plot for a 88-minute comedy. We have so many double-crosses, plot twists and side plots that you could take them and use them in two or three movies. I think the film would have been a lot better had some of the plot been taken out and replaced with more laughs, which is one thing this comedy could have used more of. What does work is the chemistry between Crystal and DeVito. Both men really dig into their roles and turn in fine performances but they are both letdown by the screenplay. One of the first scenes involves Crystal suffering from writer's block and trying to complete the same line over and over. This scene goes on way too long. What does work is the early banter between the two actors as DeVito's character is constantly showing up at bad times wanting to know if Crystal enjoyed his bad stories. There's a very funny sequence when the two are discussing the so called "plan" that was only in DeVito's mind. Ramsey, who many will remember from THE GOONIES, turns in a nice, foul-mouthed performance and you can't help but love to hate her. Her relationship with DeVito, while mean-spirited, is also quite touching in a few scenes. Again, there's a lot wrong with this film but I think the three leads have enough going to carry the weak screenplay a lot further than it deserves.

Claudio Carvalho The college teacher Larry Donner (Billy Cristal) is a blocked writer since his former wife Margareth (Kate Mulgrew) ruined him, stealing his novel that became a best-seller. He does not hide his hatred for Margareth, upsetting his girlfriend Beth Ryan (Kim Greist), who is an anthropologist teacher in the same college. While giving classes of Creative Writing, he is stalked by the student Owen (Danny DeVito) that wants to know his opinion about his crime tale. Larry tells that he did not like it, and explains that in every mystery tale, the murderer should eliminate the motive and establish an alibi, otherwise he would get caught. Further, Larry suggests Owen to watch Hitchcock's movies to understand the structure of a suspenseful story. Owen, who wants to kill his detestable mother (Anne Ramsey), watches "Strangers on a Train" and misunderstands Larry's advice, believing that his teacher wants to swap murders to eliminate the motive. Owen travels to Hawaii and while in a ship, Margareth falls overboard vanishing in the sea and is considered dead. However, Larry does not have an alibi and becomes the prime suspect, while the deranged Owen presses him to kill his mother as part of their supposed deal."Throw Momma from the Train" is one of the funniest comedies of the 80's and a great tribute to Alfred Hitchcock. The direct reference is "Strangers on a Train", but there are jokes with "Vertigo" (with the spinning camera), "Family Plot" (with the car without breaks) and other movies. The lines are excellent and there is an interesting point when Larry tells that every great romance or mystery has a train. Anne Ramsey is amazing in the role of a nasty and abusive dominating mother and the viewer will certainly feel sorrow and understand the insanity of Owen. Kim Greist is very beautiful and Kate Mulgrew is the perfect bitch. Billy Cristal performs an obsessed character with many silly and unreasonable attitudes but necessary to the plot. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Jogue a Mamãe do Trem" ("Throw Momma from the Train")