Michael Winterbottom's insight behind The Trip was to simply put Brydon and Coogan together in front of the camera and let them get on with it; despite reservations by the pair, the instinct was the correct one. The Trip to Italy picks up where The Trip leaves off - food, scenery, and the on-screen chemistry, a bromance/rivalry, between Brydon and Coogan. Again, Brydon manages to find an opportunity for his set-piece, his 'man-in-the-box' voice. In some ways, it's reminiscent of the on-screen chemistry on the Top Gear 'road trips' (another TV show that relies upon middle-aged men playing versions of themselves), but the humour is kinder, more clever; less juvenile. Badinage perhaps, rather than banter. Light-hearted, overall it works even if, at times, it starts to become self-indulgent.
Review of The Trip to Italy
