The amusing 2010 British film/TV series "The Trip" took two popular British comedians and actors Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon and took them on an entertaining road trip of England's best restaurants. In charming, incisive follow-up, "The Trip to Italy" the pair, playing semi-fictionalized versions of themselves, take a new culinary road trip through Italy, retracing the steps of the Romantic poets' grand tour and indulging in some sparkling banter and impersonation-offs. Directed by Michael Winterbottom and co-written by Winterbottom, Coogan and Brydon, the witty, loose "The Trip to Italy," like the first film, is the hit BBC series edited into a feature film. Aside from the delectable Italian dishes served throughout the film, the chief highlight is the lively banter between the two talented actors; the film is essentially a series of hilarious (and largely improvised) conversations between the two, with their impersonations the funniest (their Michael Caine is among my favorites). If you enjoyed the first film, you'll enjoy this one too, though admittedly there isn't much to it, and you can rent the full series (both the 2010 one and this one too), but it's still a warm, pleasant extension of more of the same "Trip." Handsomely filmed and wittily executed, after you see "The Trip to Italy" you'll likely want to take your own trip to Italy, or if you're like me, settle for a big plate of spaghetti.
Wes's Grade: B
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