10 Best Carl Reiner Films

10. Summer Rental

You aren't going to see a lot of comedies today that celebrate the joys of being overweight without some serious blowback or messages about body positivity, but the 1980s were a different time. And John Candy was a different property, known for transcending his appearance, acting lighter than air.

John Hughes found his quintessential suburban everyman in Candy, a Canadian who had risen to fame thanks to Second City and its television show. And Reiner similarly used Candy in Summer Rental.

It began as an idea from SNL producer Bernie Brillstein: "I have five children and I weigh 240 pounds. Being heavy in California is not a terrific thing." Summer Rental doesn't stray too far from its fat-guy-out-of-water premise, but it's no matter. The film hinges on Candy's likability more than its standard eighties summer teen comedy set up.

While Hughes may have tapped into a more emotional side of Candy, Reiner gladly plays with his more pratfall-prone side. One's enjoyment of the picture depends on how much mileage you get out of nostalgic eighties fare, but it's certainly a step up from Reiner's Mark Harmon-led Summer School. Both are equally aimless and vaguely lazy, a trend that unfortunately continued into Reiner's nineties films, but there's some charm left.

Candy and Reiner got along so well they planned to reteam, but it wasn't to be.