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IMDbPro

Throw Momma from the Train

  • 19871987
  • PG-13PG-13
  • 1h 28m
IMDb RATING
6.3/10
37K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
6,487
926
Billy Crystal and Danny DeVito in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
Home Video Trailer from Orion Pictures
Play trailer0:31
1 Video
96 Photos
ComedyCrimeThriller
A bitter ex-husband wants his former spouse dead. A put-upon momma's boy wants his mother dead. Who will pull it off?A bitter ex-husband wants his former spouse dead. A put-upon momma's boy wants his mother dead. Who will pull it off?A bitter ex-husband wants his former spouse dead. A put-upon momma's boy wants his mother dead. Who will pull it off?
IMDb RATING
6.3/10
37K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
6,487
926
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • Danny DeVito
    • Writer
      • Stu Silver
    • Stars
      • Danny DeVito
      • Billy Crystal
      • Kim Greist
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Danny DeVito
    • Writer
      • Stu Silver
    • Stars
      • Danny DeVito
      • Billy Crystal
      • Kim Greist
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 101User reviews
    • 41Critic reviews
    • 56Metascore
    • Nominated for 1 Oscar
      • 2 wins & 4 nominations total

    Videos1

    Throw Momma from the Train
    Trailer 0:31
    Throw Momma from the Train

    Photos96

    Danny DeVito in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Kim Greist in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Danny DeVito and Anne Ramsey in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Billy Crystal and Danny DeVito in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Billy Crystal and Rob Reiner in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Billy Crystal and Danny DeVito in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Billy Crystal and Danny DeVito in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Danny DeVito and Anne Ramsey in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Anne Ramsey in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Billy Crystal and Danny DeVito in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Kate Mulgrew in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
    Billy Crystal and Kim Greist in Throw Momma from the Train (1987)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Danny DeVito
    Danny DeVito
    • Owen
    Billy Crystal
    Billy Crystal
    • Larry
    Kim Greist
    Kim Greist
    • Beth
    Anne Ramsey
    Anne Ramsey
    • Momma
    Kate Mulgrew
    Kate Mulgrew
    • Margaret
    Branford Marsalis
    Branford Marsalis
    • Lester
    Rob Reiner
    Rob Reiner
    • Joel
    Bruce Kirby
    Bruce Kirby
    • Detective DeBenedetto
    Joey DePinto
    • Sergeant
    Annie Ross
    Annie Ross
    • Mrs. Hazeltine
    Raye Birk
    Raye Birk
    • Pinsky
    Oprah Winfrey
    Oprah Winfrey
    • Oprah Winfrey
    Olivia Brown
    Olivia Brown
    • Ms. Gladstone
    Philip Perlman
    Philip Perlman
    • Mr. Perlman
    Stu Silver
    • Ramon
    J. Alan Thomas
    • Millington
    Randall Miller
    Randall Miller
    • Bucky
    Andre Rosey Brown
    Andre Rosey Brown
    • Rosey
    • (as Andre 'Rosey' Brown)
    • Director
      • Danny DeVito
    • Writer
      • Stu Silver
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Anne Ramsey's speech impediment was caused by operations she underwent in order to treat throat cancer. During filming, Ramsey was undergoing additional oral surgery and endured intense pain. However, according to director Danny DeVito, she never requested to be excused from work. "Momma" went on to become Ramsey's most critically-lauded performance, culminating with Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress in 1988. Sadly, she died only six months after the ceremony because of that very same throat cancer.
    • Goofs
      When Larry reads out the title of a student's "coffee table book" he says "One Hundred Girls I'd Like To Pork" but his lips are clearly mouthing the final word as "Fuck." This line was presumably overdubbed to avoid an R rating.
    • Quotes

      [Momma sees Larry for the first time]

      Momma: Who's this?

      Owen: This is Cousin Paddy. He's coming to stay with us a while. Isn't that nice?

      Momma: [suspiciously] You don't *have* a "Cousin Paddy".

      Owen: [to Larry] You lied to me!

      [Owen knocks Larry out with a frying pan to the head]

    • Crazy credits
      The credit for Assistant Sound Editor Robert Martel has a gap in the vertical stroke of the L.
    • Alternate versions
      Network TV versions restore extra footage.
    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: The Duxorcist/Walker/Manon of the Spring/The Dead (1987)
    • Soundtracks
      LARRY'S SONG
      Written by Branford Marsalis

    User reviews101

    Review
    Top review
    A fun black comedy/thriller
    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.
    helpful•27
    5
    • eddy-28
    • Jun 20, 2004

    FAQ10

    • Why does Owen want Larry to kill Momma?
    • Who is Larry Donner?
    • Who is Owen Lift?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 11, 1987 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Throw Mama from the Train
    • Filming locations
      • Princeville, Kauai, Hawaii, USA
    • Production companies
      • Orion Pictures
      • Rollins, Morra & Brezner
      • Throw Momma
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $14,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $57,915,972
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $7,318,878
      • Dec 13, 1987
    • Gross worldwide
      • $57,915,972
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 28 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

    Related news

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