The Trip to Greece
Fans of director Michael Winterbottom’s Trip films are in for another treat with The Trip to Greece, the fourth and allegedly final installment in the decade-long series.
The delightful duo of Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon are back, again playing slightly fictional versions of themselves, this time retracing Odysseus’ journey from from Troy to Ithaca.
While little insight is offered regarding Coogan’s seemingly perilous circumstances following the cliff-hanger ending to the previous edition, The Trip to Spain, the latest adventure charges forth with the saga’s still potent combination of gorgeous scenery, mouth-watering cuisine — and, best of all, the stars’ witty banter, complete with good-natured (?) shots at one another and hilarious celebrity impersonations.
“Targets” this go-round include a few returning favorites (e.g. Mick Jagger, Roger Moore, and Marlon Brando) and many welcome additions, including Arnold Schwarzenegger, Werner Herzog, Laurence Olivier, Dustin Hoffman, Keith Richards, and, best of all, Ray Winstone (playing Henry VIII, no less).
However, as has been the case with the Trip installments from the beginning, Greece has its share of esoteric details. Certain British cultural references fly by without explanation, and a brief detour involving Turkish refugees makes more sense for people who’ve seen the recent Winterbottom/Coogan collaboration Greed, but the plot moves so nimbly that another bit of eye and/or ear candy is moments away.
Keeping with series tradition, Winterbottom and his cast also weave in entertaining local history lessons and a dramatic subplot as an intelligent counter to the witty comedy. Here, it concerns the rapidly declining health of Steve’s father, with Steve’s son Joe (Tim Leach) providing updates via increasingly emotional phone calls and Steve being haunted by his shortcomings as a son through imaginative B&W nightmares.
True to its predecessors, the existential undercurrent vaults Greece from a mere lark to another well-rounded portrait of middle-aged masculinity — though the masterful comedy thankfully remains at its forefront.
In today’s world of reboots and reunions, viewers can still logically hold out hope for an eventual The Trip to America, but if Greece is indeed the last chapter in this wonderful set of films, it’s a fitting conclusion.
Grade: A-minus. Not rated, but with adult content and language. Now available to rent via Amazon Video, iTunes, Google Play, and YouTube
(Photo: IFC Films)
