Film Review : The Trip (2010)
Two bickering friends, a road trip, good food, and one-of-a-kind comedy. Locked at home, I think this is the best runaway I could get.
The Trip was initially started as a TV series, then edited together into a film.
It starts with a phone click. Rob Brydon’s voice comes through the speaker and his words are hesitant. On the other side, Steve Coogan is half-heartedly bidding Rob into the passenger seat for a road trip across Northern England, after his girlfriend turned him down.
This sitcom is starred by Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon, acting as fictionalized, loosened versions of themselves. At first glance, it seemed to be based on their personal demeanor; snarky and impulsive Coogan alongside pleasant, yet cunning Brydon.
It presents more of Coogan, who is entering a midlife crisis with his nightly vices, Hollywood callings and his girlfriend on the other side of the world. Rob Brydon balances with a helpless concern, which irks him. The two old friends banter endlessly, including competitive impression stand offs of James Bond, Michael Caine, and many others.
The film is mainly improvised, resulting an instinctive chemistry between the pair. With the director, Michael Winterbottom, the whole story flows easily in both humor and story line. We get to see the characters going through various moments, which shapes their respective decisions by the end of the film to be gratifying.
The Trip stands out in its approach to comedy. It didn’t show generic blunt and obnoxious humor. Instead, striking moments were blended within acts and scenes. It wasn’t tediously back and forth, but well-timed setbacks provided a natural and more human comicality. As shown in Coogan’s unhinged moments, it was a hilarious bit as much as it was a cold callback to reality.
As Brydon put it, “It’s a program about food but he (Michael) never gives the audience something on a plate.”
On the other side, this humor might not be everyone’s cup of tea. Also, younger audience might not recognize the impressions Coogan and Brydon make. But, part of audience who keep up with these two have found satisfaction. One of them is Director Richard Curtis, who said the series was one of the best television programmes of all time on 2013.
Aesthetically, the whole movie was delightful. High-angled, long shots captured the beautiful scenery of North England’s countryside. It was complemented by Michael Nyman’s music scoring. A very simple, yet telling track. Its influence was most significant in the last scene of the movie; wordless shots of Brydon in his lodgings with his beloved, and Coogan, rather ramshackle, in the face of London city. It was a perfect closing to the story.
Summation
It’s a shame that I’m ten years late to this film, but every bit is timeless and thoroughly enjoyable. Coogan and Brydon offered brilliant humor for us to roll laughing about, as it gradually settles into a long-lasting musing.
