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Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer:
Stu Silver (written by)
Release Date:
11 December 1987 (USA)
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Tagline:
Owen asked his friend, Larry, for a small favor...
Plot:
A bitter ex-husband. A put upon Momma's boy. Both want their respective spouse and mother dead, but who will pull it off? full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
Nominated for Oscar.
Another 2 wins
&
2 nominations
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NewsDesk:
User Comments:
A fun black comedy/thriller
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Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Danny DeVito | ... | Owen |
 | Billy Crystal | ... | Larry |
 | Kim Greist | ... | Beth |
 | Anne Ramsey | ... | Momma |
 | Kate Mulgrew | ... | Margaret |
| Branford Marsalis | ... | Lester |
 | Rob Reiner | ... | Joel |
| Bruce Kirby | ... | Detective DeBenedetto |
| Joey DePinto | ... | Sargeant |
| Annie Ross | ... | Mrs. Hazeltine |
| Raye Birk | ... | Pinsky |
 | Oprah Winfrey | ... | Herself |
| Olivia Brown | ... | Ms. Gladstone |
| Philip Perlman | ... | Mr. Perlman |
| Stu Silver | ... | Ramon |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
88 min | Germany:87 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Iceland:L |
Argentina:13 |
Australia:M |
Chile:14 |
Finland:K-16 |
Sweden:15 |
UK:15 |
USA:PG-13 |
West Germany:12 |
Singapore:PG |
Canada:PG
Filming Locations:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Larry on the train talks to Owen about the perfect beginning of a novel and mentions Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities. "It was the best of times it was the worst of times..". Momma then says, 'The night was sultry'. This is a variation of the line,'The night was so very sultry.'. A quote from the same novel.
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Goofs:
Continuity: When Owen sneaks into Margaret's house, he's barefoot. Then when her gardener shows up, he has to hide behind the couch, it clearly shows he has shoes on.
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Quotes:
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Crooked Lines (2003)
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Soundtrack:
O KA LAAU
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FAQ
List: Murder swapsmore
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Throw Momma from the Train, could best be described as a newer version of Hitchcock's "Strangers on a Train". Stu Sliver's script was creative and very darkly comic.
Danny DeVito stars (and also directs) as Owen, a sort of dim-witted writing student who lives with his monstrous mother (Anne Ramsey). Owen's writing teacher, Larry (Billy Crystal) is having trouble with his writing career because his wife (Kate Mulgrew) stole his first book and made it her own bestseller and lives the highlife in Hawaii. After Owen constantly annoys Larry for days about his first story, he wrote from class, Larry suggests that Owen see a Hitchcock movie in order to write the perfect murder mystery novel. Owen then gets the idea from "Strangers on a Train" that he will go to Hawaii and murder Larry's wife, while Larry will kill his mother. But Larry has the motive, and with the police coming after him, Larry now has the opportunity to kill off the meanest old lady, he's ever seen, but realizes that she is harder to get rid of than both he and Owen thought.
Throw Momma from the Train, I think is a fun comic adventure, both Danny DeVito and Bill Crystal are funny, while Anne Ramsey's Oscar-nominated role of Momma is hysterically frightening. There are a lot of laughs in this film, especially the classic "One Hundred Girls I'd Like to Fork" story. Kim Griest, Annie Ross and Bruce Kirby also star, with Rob Reiner, Oprah Winfrey and Danny DeVito's own father in law, Philip Perlman make cameos. This is a good example of classic black comedy.