Uncle Buck (1989)

Bachelor and all round slob, Buck, babysits his brother's rebellious teenage daughter and her cute younger brother and sister.

Director:

John Hughes

Writer:

John Hughes

Stars:

John Candy, Macaulay Culkin, Jean Louisa Kelly

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Candy	...	Buck Russell
Jean Louisa Kelly	...	Tia Russell
Gaby Hoffmann	...	Maizy Russell (as Gaby Hoffman)
Macaulay Culkin	...	Miles Russell
Amy Madigan	...	Chanice Kobolowski
Elaine Bromka	...	Cindy Russell
Garrett M. Brown	...	Bob Russell
Laurie Metcalf	...	Marcie Dahlgren-Frost
Jay Underwood	...	Bug
Brian Tarantina	...	E. Roger Coswell
Mike Starr	...	Pooter-the-Clown
Suzanne Shepherd	...	Mrs. Hogarth
William Windom	...	Mr. Hatfield (voice)
Dennis Cockrum	...	Pal
Joel Robinson	...	Miles' Friend #1

Storyline

As an idle, good-natured bachelor, Uncle Buck is the last person you would think of to watch the kids. However, during a family crisis, he is suddenly left in charge of his nephew and nieces. Unaccustomed to suburban life, fun-loving Uncle Buck soon charms his younger relatives Miles and Maizy with his hefty cooking and his new way of doing the laundry. His carefree style does not impress everyone though - especially his rebellious teenage niece, Tia, and his impatient girlfriend, Chanice. With a little bit of luck and a lot of love, Uncle Buck manages to surprise everyone in this heartwarming family comedy.

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Plot Keywords:

twin | watching tv | heart attack | 6 year old | 15 year old | 

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Taglines:

OH NO! IT'S...

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 August 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Uncle Buck

Filming Locations:

Wheeling, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$8,794,501, 18 June 1989, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$66,758,538

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$79,258,538

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Hughes Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When casting the role of Kevin McCallister in Home Alone (1990), Chris Columbus had already seen Macaulay Culkin in Uncle Buck (1989) but he wanted to audition some other kids first even though John Hughes had his heart set on Culkin. So Columbus met Culkin in New York and was very charmed by him and he thought he was fantastic. Columbus auditioned five other kids and none of them shaped up to Culkin. Columbus went with Culkin because he was not as picture perfect and he had an instant bond to the kids in the audience. Columbus knew the cameras would love him and he was immensely funny.

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Goofs

When Buck is smoking near the fireplace on the couch the length of his cigar ash changes (01:08:34 medium, 01:09:22 long, 01:09:49 short). This is also an issue while Buck is looking at the wedding photos before (28:28) and after (28:38) he pulls out the folded photo.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Tia: Get your bag off the table, people eat there.
Maisey Russell: People eat off of plates.
Tia: Don't give me any crap, Maizy.

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Crazy Credits

When the movie finishes, John Candy's voice yells "Wake up!", followed by the sound of an air horn and John laughing.

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Alternate Versions

Trailer contains several scenes that aren't in the final cut of the film, including one of Buck shaving, one where Buck talks to Mrs. Russell about how he'll handle the kids, the lunch bag in the school locker, and Buck talking to Marcie in a supermarket.

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Connections

Referenced in Happy Gilmore (1996)

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Soundtracks

Tweedlee Dee
(uncredited)
Written by Winfield Scott
Performed by John Candy

User Reviews

A Beautiful Film About Family and Teen Choices

I love this movie. John Hughes is brilliant. John Candy shines. The plot

was perfect and the movie turned out great. Jean Louisa Kelly is perfect

for the girl going through decisions on teen sex. And seeing little

Macaulay Culkin before Home Alone and his fame made him a good start.

And before Now and Then and 200 Cigerettes, little Gaby Hoffmann is so

adorable. The little ones were my favorite characters. And the scene

where Miles (Culkin) was asking Buck (Candy) all of the personal

questions was one touching and entertaining scene. This movie was more

of a drama than a comedy once you get the feeling. Everyone should love

this movi