Les Chester en Floride

John Candy stands alone as one of our true comic geniuses. I was so saddened when he passed away so young. He left the world a truly sadder place. We were all robbed of a priceless national treasure. This man was a true comic giant, but he was also a fine actor. He made you CARE about the characters that he played. John reminded me of Charlie Chaplain in so many ways. Chaplain could make an audience laugh and cry without using one single word. John Candy did that in Planes Trains And Automobiles and it was one of the finest acting jobs that I have ever seen in a movie. Lee Strassburg would have been so proud. Its in the scene where Steve Martin bawls him out in a motel room, he tells him basically what a pain in the ass he is. There is a hurt look on John's face that I will never forget as long as I live. He made you FEEL the hurt and the pain in his heart. John Candy lost his father at an early age and was haunted by that death all of his life. I guess it is true that some of our greatest comics have tears in their hearts. In Summer Rental John gives what I would consider one of his "typical" performances. He is a loving family man who just decides to get away from it all. Richard Crenna and Rip Torn are both wonderful character actors and both give Candy able support. I can tell that everyone who made this film had a ball doing it. It sure comes through in the finished product. Carl Reiner is a true giant of comedy and I am so glad that he directed this film. He and Candy worked so well that it is a shame that they never made another film together. This is one of those films that doesn't carry an important social message, the idea is that you should just leave your brain and social conscience at the door of the cinema and just relax and have a good time watching a true comic giant at work. I truly believe in my heart that John was one of God's gifts who was put here to make us laugh. Considering the current state of our world and the current state of "comedy", almost 10 years after his untimely death, I think we need John Candy now more then ever before.

I thoroughly enjoy watching this movie every time they show it on Comedy Central or USA or TNT. This movie is classic John Candy all the way. Candy has scenes, no matter how many I times I watch, that make me laugh so hard I fall from my chair. Like when he kicks all the people out of his house wielding a crutch. Sure the story may be weak and a little corny with the whole boat race but it ranks up there among my favorites.

It has some other memorable moments including Rip Torn's character of Scully. My of my favorite parts is when he is teaching Jack (played by Candy) to sail. They are on the boat late at night and they are both drunk. Scully announces to jack, "Here's and little ditty me mother used to sing to me", at which point he breaks into "The Theme from Love Boat" and Jack joins in with him. And then there is the scenes between Scully and Angus when Scully refers to Angus as a "dumb Swede" even though he is a Scot.

It is a good rainy day rental.

John Candy's wit and humor shines through as Jack Chester, the over worked air traffic controller who reluctantly takes a vacation to the beach with his family. The laughs keep coming as Jack and his family spend the summer at the beach with many mishaps occurring throughout the movie. The movie is about family and new friends pulling together, working side by side, believing in a dream and achieving an impossible goal. We've watched this movie many times, but we still laugh and feel good when the movie ends. The standing joke at our home, when we eat dinner out at a restaurant that passes off breaded fish as an expensive seafood item with a fancy name, is "Look - it's Scully's Catch of the day"! This movie is good, clean, family fun - entertainment for the entire family!

The type of movie you can watch once a year and never get tired of. Typical John Candy film. Why did he always get mediocre scripts, save the John Hughes films? Was Hughes the only director who saw his talent? Either way, Candy rises above the material and makes the film fun to watch, but not necessarily a great film by any means. Great line regarding "The Smurfs."

3/5 stars -

John Ulmer

The world is a happier place with a John Candy film to watch, and still after decades he continues to entertain us even with a mediocre story line such as summer rental.

John Candy is the embodiment of the complete comedian, his delivery is second to no one, his physical comedy makes us want to reach out and hug him, and his one liners deliver that "Gotcha'" moment every time.

Summer Rental is a film I have seen several times now and anyone over the age of 12 can enjoy the story line of the lovable underdog coming out victorious over the big and rich bully played perfectly by Richard Crenna. Adding to the films entertainment is the versatile actor Rip Torn who plays Scully the sea captain who is the owner of a rundown restaurant and a fleet of broken down sailboats.

This is a simple story line, easy to follow for even a 12 year old, with the inspirational Chester family played by John Candy, Karen Austin, and their two children played by Kerri Green and Joey Lawrence who find a way to come together as a tight knit family beginning with their adventure on the high seas in the regatta against the wealthy Richard Crenna.

As in any John Candy film there are scenes he steals that are both memorable and unfortunately knowing there will be no more John Candy films. RIP John.

I give it a 7 out of 10 IMDb rating.