Netflix & Chill #85: The Trip To Spain

Watched On: Hulu
Released: 2017
Directed By: Michael Winterbottom
Starring: Rob Brydon, Steve Coogan, Claire Keelan, Marta Barrio, Kyle Soller, Margo Stilley
Rotten Tomatoes: 83% Tomatometer, 64% Audience Score
Pick: Mine

Look, I'll be totally honest here: no idea why these movies work so well, but they do. It's a basic formula at this point: two middle aged white guys get in a car, travel around a location (Northern England for the first movie, Italy for the second and now Spain), riff with each other on various funny topics and impressions, take in scenery, drink wine, eat fabulous looking food. 

That's pretty much it. If you really want to you can expand the formula a bit: both men seem to be envious of the other in slightly different ways. Rob has a stable family life, Steve doesn't. Steve has more professional accolades and success than Rob does. These movies also seem to have a melancholy undercurrent to them. Part of that makes sense: there's always that sort of bump that everyone experiences coming back from vacation or a trip where you have to get back into the regular groove of your life again. Sometimes it feels good to be home, but I can understand the melancholy of returning to the mundane.

I have to imagine that these movies are a joy to make though. Michael Winterbottom seems to know how this works very well: focus on the cinematography, get shots of wherever they are and then let Brydon and Coogan get their engines revved up and start bouncing off of one another. The food looks amazing, the restaurants glorious, the wine delectable- but really, it's the two of them that make these movies more than just travel documentaries. 

The dynamic duo seemed to have a fondness for Michael Caine impressions in earlier movies, but the standout riffs here involve dueling Roger Moore impressions. (A stay in Grenada when they're talking about the Reconquista and the Moors in Spain is especially hilarious.) Marlon Brando as Torquemada makes an appearance. The Spanish Inquisition shows up as well. 

Honestly, I can't think of much more to say about this movie. It is what it is. Do I think it's a sit down, get a glass of wine, some popcorn and give it your full attention kind of a movie? Not really. It's perfect for background noise though- you can sort of watch it and do other things if you need too. Turns out there's another one as well: The Trip To Greece, so I'll guess I'll have to dig that up and see what that one is like as well.

Overall: A beautiful looking travelogue of a movie, The Trip to Spain continues doing what these movies do best: trafficking in dry humor, hilarious impressions while contemplating life, career and mortality of both of the men at the center. There's really not much to these movies than that-- and while that might seem fairly simple, sometimes a simple concept with the right people executing it is all you need to make a great movie- and for the third time in a row, Steve Coogan, Rob Brydon and Michael Winterbottom  have done it again. My Grade: *** out of ****

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

I Didn't Watch The State of The Union

I didn't watch the State of the Union last night for the first time in what seems like a very long time indeed. I didn't watch it out of some form of virtue-signalling protest. I didn't watch it because it started at about eight o'clock at that is prime time for bedtime for the kids. And anyone with kids will tell you: you don't mess with bedtime. Also, I just didn't care. I know in some areas of the flaming dumpster fire that is our political discourse these days that's a hanging offense. "You didn't care? How dare you not care! Aren't you against [insert controversy of the week here]?" or my favorite, "Well, you have the privilege of not caring about this stuff." No, it's not about my privilege. (That's an entirely different conversation.) I just genuinely did not care, because it did not matter. Both ends of the political spectrum live in parallel universes, I decided. They're going to listen to the same speech
Read more

Tintin, Ranked

Image
What can you say about Tintin? He's been around for decades- was one of the most popular comics of the 20th Century. He's spawned a television cartoon ( which I remember watching on Nickelodeon ) and more recently a movie ( two more of which are apparently coming, though it's been awhile since the movie dropped .) He hasn't been free from controversy- Tintin In The Congo is hard to find these days for a reason, the least of which is (what I'm guessing) the somewhat 'problematic' portrayal of Africans in the Belgian Congo when the reality of that chapter of colonial history was dark indeed. For sure, if there's an aspect of these books that makes me cringe somewhat, it's his portrayal of Africans. Herge's portrayal of Latinx individuals and cultures tends to be a bit better, though his portrayal of indigenous folks and Asians is somewhat mixed. He's excellent in The Blue Lotus , somewhat less so with his portrayal indigenous people in Ti
Read more

Psephology Rocks: Holiday Grab Bag Edition

Well, there's lots to talk about post-Election Day, not only in America, but there's a few bits and bobs from around the world worth touching on as well.  We'll start local and work upwards: Local:  Well, I went three for three in my City Council Endorsements- Botchway, Salih took the At-Large Seats and Susan Mims took the District B Seat.  The District B race between incumbent Susan Mims and student Ryan Hall was less of a contest than I think people were anticipating, as Mims won handily 59% to 41%. I had nothing in particular against Hall, per say- but I feel like if Raj Patel who was another student who ran a few cycles back (I want to say 2010?) had serious money and a serious platform behind him and didn't win, then Hall was going to be a long shot. He checked all the right progressive boxes for Iowa City, but he was running against an incumbent who might not be uber-Progressive, but not say, Terry Dickens either. I think Hall would have had a better shot aga
Read more