Since I was a young man, I found that I found myself escaping reality by watching movies. After a long week of working, politics, and life, I loved nothing better than to settle into a movie theatre seat with some popcorn and watch a blockbuster movie. I know it may be a little odd, but I am one of the few that love getting a seat well before the start of the feature film to take in the ½ dozen previews before the movie begins. Looking back now, I’m convinced that part of the attraction and draw to movie theaters was the complete darkness and quiet of a movie house, the exact opposite of the noisy and loud reality of my life at the time. I also need to note that with the advent of streaming, coupled with the Covid-19 pandemic, I now find myself rarely going to see movies on the big screen and I really miss it.
I recently saw a documentary about a movie personality that I, like many others, really loved and adored. That personality belonged to John Franklin Candy. Over the rainy weekend, I watched this two-hour documentary about John Candy’s life. The documentary was titled “I Like Me.” It was fascinating, fantastic, sad, and unfortunately incomplete, all at the same time.
Those close to me know that I could watch any John Candy movie, any time, day or night, and would never be bored or disappointed. You always knew what his films had in store. Whenever you saw him on the big screen it was like seeing a long lost childhood friend, a friend who made you laugh, a friend who made you feel good about yourself, a friend more concerned about your well-being than his own.
Just to show you how crazy of a fanatic I am: when my kids were young, regardless of what was going on in the house, I forced them to stop doing their homework to watch Planes, Trains, and Automobiles each time it was on television. I know, not the best parenting skills, but they managed to get by without too much therapy. Let me add that to this day we watch Planes, Trains, and Automobiles on Thanksgiving Eve like it is a religion. Others may argue that he was more funny or more compelling in his other films, like: Only the Lonely, Splash, JFK, Uncle Buck, Home Alone, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, Blues Brothers, or Brewster’s Millions, to name a few, but my two favorite films have always been Planes, Trains, and Automobiles and Stripes.
Let’s get to the quick. John Candy, haunted by the fact that his father died at the age of 35, similarly died in 1994 at the tragically young age of 43. John left behind a devoted widow, Rosemary, and two amazing but grief-stricken children, Christopher and Jennifer. In the documentary, we learn that John was a complete family man and a true friend to anyone and everyone. While John loved his birth country of Canada, he also grew to love the United States. After spending some time in the U.S., John actually tried to sign up for the United States Armed Services, but an old high school injury prohibited his admission.
John’s co-workers and friends talked about his love and dedication both to his craft and friends. One co-star said part of John’s problem was that he said yes to too many people. John was a people pleaser, and that ultimately was a blessing and a curse. In his later years, John lived a somewhat chaotic life flying back and forth between obligations to his beloved Canadian football team, the Toronto Argonauts and doing film appearances for friends from Second City or from his early days in the industry. John’s loyalty to his friends caused him to make some poor movie choices as his colleagues would frequently ask Hollywood’s most loved star for an appearance in their movie projects. John would never deny their requests. His kindness was well admired but it was also taken advantage of. The star once acknowledged that in show business some folks you do favors for never stop asking for more. Seems like we can all relate to that one. Despite the opportunists, John lived a life of laughter, love, and compassion.
What was John Candy’s magic? John was the kind of guy who made you feel good about yourself. He had an infectious personality and was the kind of individual you wanted to have a beer with or go bowling with. He always was upbeat and had nice things to say about others. How many of us can truly say we do the same?
After watching the documentary, I felt that I knew John better. The film reaffirmed what I knew about him just by watching him on the big screen. The takeaway here is that we can learn about how we should treat others by watching this documentary. John showed us that life should not be a self-consuming or selfish endeavor—it should be about treating others well and making them feel good about themselves. Perhaps we should refocus our lives on bringing joy to others rather than striving for and achieving our personal and often self-serving goals. And if you’re lucky enough to make the bigtime like John did, perhaps we can take his lead to stay grounded and remember who we are and where we came from.
While this documentary reinforced some of what was known about John, it also provided some new information about him. We learned that John was plagued with anxiety and depression, but he never allowed that to appear publicly. John dealt with a weight issue since high school and despite the cruel comments and insensitive interviews, he never allowed himself to be negative or bitter. The documentary highlighted the one human quality that most defined John – authenticity. This rarely found quality made John so relatable, so popular, and so loved. Within the film’s honest and unrehearsed tributes from John’s co-stars, the family interviews, and the many home movies and outtakes, John’s authenticity was obvious. Not one person or clip shed a negative light on John. It was clear that this gentleman loved his family and his colleagues, and they loved him back.
John was a class by himself, and we should all aspire to have some parts of John influence us and how we react and interact with others. I conclude by asking, wouldn’t the world be a much better place if we all were as optimistic and kind as John’s character, Del, in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles?
