Film Screening 27th October, 2011

Poster for The Trip

The Trip 

8:00 PM, 27th October, 2011

  • MA
  • 107 mins
  • 2010
  • Michael Winterbottom
  • Steve Coogan, Rob Brydon, Claire Keelan

To call Michael Winterbottom (24 Hour Party People, Tristram Shandy, 9 Songs) an eclectic director is somewhat of an understatement. His latest film, initially a six part TV series edited down into filmic form, sees him taking on the role of comedic mockumentarian, with ample help from his two wonderful leads Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon. Playing slightly exaggerated versions of themselves, the film follows the two across the north of England as they set out to review fine dining establishments. This, however, is merely a delightful excuse to put two excellent comedians across the table from each other and riff on fame, their respective careers and, in what is the constant highlight of the film, compare celebrity impersonations. Thanks to Brydon's wealth of caricatures (Michael Caine, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Billy Connolly to name few) and Coogan's deadpan reactions (and a smattering of impressions of his own) these scenes will have you in tears of laughter.

Beyond the raw frivolity of the whole experience, a certain amount of pathos is sprinkled throughout the film in comparing the (semi) fictional life of the big shot but isolated celebrity of Coogan with the more humble, but happy, Brydon. Winterbottom never lets this get in the way of a good laugh though and the film is consistently hilarious. So if you've ever wondered whether comedians are still funny even if you're just stuck in a car or a restaurant with them, The Trip clearly answers yes.

Daniel Eisenberg