MRQE Ranks: Cinema's Best Road Trip Flicks

1

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Cast: Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Bert Lahr, Margaret Hamilton

Director: Victor Fleming, George Cukor, Richard Thorpe, King Vidor

Writer: L. Frank Baum

Synopsis: The third and definitive film adaptation of L. Frank Baum's 1900 children's fantasy, this musical adventure is a genuine family classic that made J... [MORE]

2

It Happened One Night (1934)

Cast: Claudette Colbert, Clark Gable, Walter Connolly, Jason Thomas, Roscoe Karns

Director: Frank Capra

Synopsis: Frank Capra's seminal screwball comedy, which won all five major Academy Awards for 1934, is still as breezy and beguiling today. Claudette Colbert... [MORE]

3

The Muppet Movie (1979)

Cast: Austin Pendleton, Dom DeLuise, Steve Martin, Mel Brooks, Edgar Bergen

Director: James Frawley

Synopsis: Kermit the Frog and Fozzie Bear, from of the large crew of loveably fuzzy characters created by puppetmaster Jim Henson, have embarked on a quest f... [MORE]

4

The Straight Story (1999)

Cast: Richard Farnsworth, Harry Dean Stanton, Sissy Spacek, Everett McGill, John Farley

Director: David Lynch

Synopsis: David Lynch offers an uncharacteristically straightforward and warmly sentimental approach to his material in this film, based on a true story, abo... [MORE]

5

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)

Cast: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Ian Holm, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Bean

Director: Peter Jackson

Synopsis: New Zealand filmmaker Peter Jackson fulfills his lifelong dream of transforming author J.R.R. Tolkien's best-selling fantasy epic into a three-part... [MORE]

6

Sideways (2004)

Cast: Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church, Virginia Madsen, Sandra Oh, Marylouise Burke

Director: Alexander Payne

Synopsis: Directed by Alexander Payne, Sideways follows Miles (Paul Giamatti), who is distressed about his lack of success as a novelist, and Jack (Thomas Ha... [MORE]

7

Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987)

Cast: Steve Martin, John Candy, William Windom, Michael McKean, Edie McClurg

Director: John Hughes

Synopsis: Were it not for its profanity-laden opening scenes, John Hughes' Planes, Trains and Automobiles might have been suitable family entertainment: cert... [MORE]

8

Rain Man (1988)

Cast: Dustin Hoffman, Tom Cruise, Valeria Golino, Jerry Molen, Michael D. Roberts

Director: Barry Levinson

Synopsis: Self-centered, avaricious Californian Charlie Babbitt (Tom Cruise) is informed that his long-estranged father has died. Expecting at least a portio... [MORE]

9

The Blues Brothers (1980)

Cast: John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, James Brown, Cab Calloway, Carrie Fisher

Director: John Landis

Synopsis: Expanding on their Saturday Night Live characters, John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd star as Jake and Elwood Blues, two white boys with black soul. Spor... [MORE]

10

Duel (1971) (TV)

Cast: Dennis Weaver, Tim Herbert, Charles Seel, Jacqueline Scott

Director: Steven Spielberg

Synopsis: Driving down a deserted Southern California highway at a safe and sane 55 miles per hour, David Mann (Dennis Weaver) steps on the pedal to pass a l... [MORE]

11

Thelma & Louise (1991)

Cast: Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis, Harvey Keitel, Michael Madsen, Brad Pitt

Director: Ridley Scott

Synopsis: Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon play Thelma and Louise, two working-class friends who together have planned a weekend getaway from the men in their ... [MORE]

12

About Schmidt (2002)

Cast: Jack Nicholson, Kathy Bates, Hope Davis, Dermot Mulroney, June Squibb

Director: Alexander Payne

Synopsis: Jack Nicholson plays retiring insurance actuary Warren Schmidt in Alexander Payne's About Schmidt. Schmidt has settled into a dormant life. He has ... [MORE]

13

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

Cast: Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, Steve Carell, Paul Dano, Abigail Breslin

Director: Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris

Synopsis: When a pudgy, bespectacled seven-year-old, Olive (Abigail Breslin), voices her desire to take home the coveted Little Miss Sunshine crown at an upc... [MORE]

14

Mad Max (1979)

Cast: Mel Gibson, Joanne Samuel, Hugh Keays-Byrne, Steve Bisley, Roger Ward

Director: George Miller

15

The Sure Thing (1985)

Cast: John Cusack, Daphne Zuniga, Anthony Edwards, Boyd Gaines, Lisa Jane Persky

Director: Rob Reiner

Synopsis: Director Rob Reiner's The Sure Thing is essentially It Happened One Night for the 1980s, but its lack of surprise in no way impedes its entertainme... [MORE]

16

Easy Rider (1969)

Cast: Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Jack Nicholson, Karen Black, Antonio Mendoza

Director: Dennis Hopper

Synopsis: Tossing wristwatches away, two bikers hit the road to find America in Dennis Hopper's anti-establishment classic. After a major cocaine sale to an ... [MORE]

17

The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)

Cast: Gael Garcia Bernal, Rodrigo de la Serna, Mia Maestro, Mercedes Moran, Jean-Pierre Noher

Director: Walter Salles

Synopsis: Brazilian director Walter Salles Jr. follows up the Golden Globe-nominated Behind the Sun with this filmed adaptation of Argentinian-born Cuban rev... [MORE]

18

Into the Wild (2007)

Cast: Emile Hirsch, Marcia Gay Harden, William Hurt, Catherine Keener, Hal Holbrook

Director: Sean Penn

Synopsis: Into the Wild is writer/director Sean Penn's adaptation of the popular book by Jon Krakauer, a nonfiction account of the post-collegiate wanderings... [MORE]

19

The Puffy Chair (2005)

Cast: Mark Duplass, Kathryn Aselton, Rhett Wilkins, Julie Fischer, Gerald Finnegan

Director: Jay Duplass

Synopsis: Dejected by his failure to achieve fame as a New York City indie-rocker and unable to figure out just when it was that his life took a sharp turn f... [MORE]

20

Swingers (1996)

Cast: Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Ron Livingston, Patrick Van Horn, Alex Desert

Director: Doug Liman

Synopsis: A knowing examination of the psyche of the modern American male, Doug Liman's debut comedy Swingers stars screenwriter Jon Favreau as the sensitive... [MORE]

21

Broken Flowers (2005)

Cast: Bill Murray, Jeffrey Wright, Julie Delpy, Heather Alicia Simms, Brea Frazier

Director: Jim Jarmusch

Synopsis: A man sets out to find the son he didn't know he had and winds up getting answers to some questions he never asked in this comedy drama from direct... [MORE]

22

Vacation (1983)

Cast: Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid, Anthony Michael Hall

Director: Harold Ramis

Synopsis: The first film in the Vacation comedy franchise stars Chevy Chase as Clark Griswold, an ad exec who becomes consumed with taking his family cross-c... [MORE]

23

Death Race 2000 (1975)

Cast: David Carradine, Sylvester Stallone, Simone Griffeth, Mary Woronov, Roberta Collins

Director: Paul Bartel

Synopsis: Cult hero Paul Bartel directed this low-budget satire in which America's passion for cars, violence, and sporting events are finally brought togeth... [MORE]

24

Nurse Betty (2000)

Cast: Renee Zellweger, Morgan Freeman, Chris Rock, Greg Kinnear, Aaron Eckhart

Director: Neil Labute

Synopsis: After two acclaimed independent films in which he took a troubling look at male/female relations, director Neil LaBute moves on to less controversi... [MORE]

25

Cars (2006)

Director: John Lasseter, Joe Ranft

Synopsis: A pedal-to-the-metal race car determined to prove his worth on the tracks discovers that life isn't always about crossing the finish line first in ... [MORE]

26

Transamerica (2005)

Cast: Felicity Huffman, Kevin Zegers, Fionnula Flanagan, Graham Greene, Burt Young

Director: Duncan Tucker

Synopsis: The first film by Duncan Tucker, Transamerica stars Felicity Huffman as a pre-operative transsexual named Bree (whose given name was Stanley). One ... [MORE]

27

Midnight Run (1988)

Cast: Robert De Niro, Charles Grodin, Dennis Farina, Yaphet Kotto

Director: Martin Brest

Synopsis: Director Martin Brest, of Going in Style and Beverly Hills Cop fame, was in charge of Midnight Run. Robert De Niro stars as Jack Walsh, a hard-bitt... [MORE]

28

The Road (2009)

Cast: Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall, Guy Pearce

Director: John Hillcoat

Synopsis: A father (Viggo Mortensen) and son make their way across a post-apocalyptic United States in hopes of finding civilization amongst the nomadic cann... [MORE]

29

The Hangover (2009)

Cast: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Justin Bartha, Heather Graham

Director: Todd Phillips

Synopsis: A blowout Las Vegas bachelor party turns into a race against time when three hung-over groomsmen awaken after a night of drunken debauchery to find... [MORE]

30

Vanishing Point (1971)

Cast: Barry Newman, Cleavon Little, Dean Jagger, Victoria Medlin

Director: Richard C. Sarafian

31

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)

Cast: Jason Mewes, Kevin Smith, Ben Affleck, Shannon Elizabeth, Eliza Dushku

Director: Kevin Smith

Writer: Kevin Smith

Synopsis: The frequently recurring title characters, employed by writer and director Kevin Smith as supporting players in several of his films, are put to re... [MORE]

32

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)

Cast: John Cho, Kal Penn, Paula Garces, David Krumholtz, Eddie Kaye Thomas

Director: Danny Leiner

Synopsis: Directed by Danny Leiner, Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle follows the life-changing (and mind-altering) journey of Korean-American investment b... [MORE]

33

Dumb & Dumber (1994)

Cast: Jim Carrey, Jeff Daniels, Lauren Holly, Teri Garr, Karen Duffy

Director: Peter Farrelly

Synopsis: Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels play the title roles (though viewers may find themselves debating which is which) in this genially low-brow comedy. Llo... [MORE]

34

The Darjeeling Limited (2007)

Cast: Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman, Amara Karan, Wallace Wolodarsky

Director: Wes Anderson

Synopsis: Wes Anderson's The Darjeeling Limited stars Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and Adrien Brody as three brothers who, at the insistence of the oldest... [MORE]

35

Tommy Boy (1995)

Cast: Chris Farley, David Spade, Brian Dennehy, Bo Derek, Dan Aykroyd

Director: Peter Segal

Synopsis: Saturday Night Live star Chris Farley had his first starring role in this frankly lowbrow comedy, which teamed him with fellow SNL cast member Davi... [MORE]

36

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998)

Cast: Johnny Depp, Benicio Del Toro, Gary Busey, Ellen Barkin, Christina Ricci

Director: Terry Gilliam

Synopsis: Terry Gilliam (Brazil, Twelve Monkeys, The Fisher King) directed this colorful, stylized, pseudo-psychedelic $21-million adaptation of the 1971 Hu... [MORE]

37

Paul (2011)

Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig

Director: Greg Mottola

Synopsis: Two average sci-fi geeks get caught up in the ultimate interplanetary adventure after picking up an extraterrestrial during a road trip to Area 51 ... [MORE]