246) The Trip (2010) Dir: Michael Winterbottom Date Released: June 10, 2011 Date Seen: June 12, 2011 Rating: 4/5
Um, no idea what some of my compeers were on about when they said this one is "formless" or "not a movie." The 2-hour cut of the film is nothing if not meticulously structured around Steve Coogan's character arc. The insertion and selective use of dinner-time banter was impeccable. And while I could have done without a heavy-handed aside or two, I was totally engaged throughout, especially by the way that Winterbottom valorized the art of food preparation in the pre-meal restaurant scenes. Very funny and often very sharp. I may catch up with the mini-series version of this. But for now, I'm sated.
