Road trip movies have a few things that make them work. In them,
an odd couple pair ends up traveling long distance together through
some sort of happenstance that neither of them can control. The
movies usually involve several forms of transportation or vehicle
changes and anything that can go wrong along the way, usually does
go wrong. In the end, the odd couple finds they have more in common
than they thought and they usually become best buddies and there
are lots of laughs along the way.
”
Due Date
”
is just the latest film to follow the formula. Peter Highman
(Robert Downey Jr), whose last name seems selected by the four
writers who worked on the screenplay just for an off-color joke
near the end of the movie, needs to get from Atlanta to Los Angeles
before his wife Sarah’s (Michelle Monaghan) scheduled c-section. He
is aboard a plane and ready to go when a tiff with fellow plane
passenger Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis) gets them both booted
from the aircraft and placed on the no-fly list. Peter is in
especially bad shape because he left his luggage on the plane so he
has no wallet or I.D. (which is kind of crazy because in real life
I am sure airport security would be sure to boot off any luggage of
a suspected terrorist rather than leaving it on board.)
Road trip movies have a few things that make them work. In them, an odd couple pair ends up traveling long distance together through some sort of happenstance that neither of them can control. The movies usually involve several forms of transportation or vehicle changes and anything that can go wrong along the way, usually does go wrong. In the end, the odd couple finds they have more in common than they thought and they usually become best buddies and there are lots of laughs along the way.
“Due Date” is just the latest film to follow the formula. Peter Highman (Robert Downey Jr), whose last name seems selected by the four writers who worked on the screenplay just for an off-color joke near the end of the movie, needs to get from Atlanta to Los Angeles before his wife Sarah’s (Michelle Monaghan) scheduled c-section. He is aboard a plane and ready to go when a tiff with fellow plane passenger Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis) gets them both booted from the aircraft and placed on the no-fly list. Peter is in especially bad shape because he left his luggage on the plane so he has no wallet or I.D. (which is kind of crazy because in real life I am sure airport security would be sure to boot off any luggage of a suspected terrorist rather than leaving it on board.)
While Peter is wandering through a rental car lot (though he has no means to rent a car) Ethan Tremblay offers him a ride out to Hollywood. Despite his previous bad encounters with Ethan, Peter agrees because he doesn’t see another way to get home in time for the birth of his baby.
Ethan is pretty much every bad personality trait rolled into one persona. And whenever the writers allow him a moment to make him a sympathetic character, they quickly snatch it back with crass scenes. Peter is not sympathetic at all. From the beginning, he is rude, self-centered and short-tempered. While his irritation at Ethan is understandable, he also lashes out in hateful ways at the people he is supposed to care about, such as his wife.
In the end, all the funniest moments were revealed in the trailer and there wasn’t much left to see.
But that doesn’t mean the road trip genre can’t be funny when it is done well. Perhaps the pinnacle is the 1987 film “Planes, Trains and Automobiles.” The key is that John Hughes who wrote and directed the movie made main character Neal Page’s (Steve Martin) irritation with the situation grow slowly over the film so that when he finally gets to the scene in the film where he lets loose with a stream of curse words, most of us get it.
Neal is a traveling salesman who wants to get home to spend Thanksgiving with his family. But weather issues put his air travel on hold. Complicating things, he also meets a guy who is an obnoxious slob who tags along on his travels. Del Griffith (John Candy) is a lot more likeable than Galifianakis’ Ethan. Hughes gives more explanation to what makes Neal and Del tick. And, of course, Martin and Candy are spot on with their comedic timing. Galifianakis and Downey Jr. have their moments, but it’s not consistent throughout the movie.
Another of my favorite road trip films is more of a romantic comedy from 1985. “The Sure Thing” is directed by Rob Reiner with John Cusack as Walter “Gib” Gibson. Gib is a college guy who is focused on one thing and it’s not his studies. His friend Lance (Anthony Edwards, before he found “ER” fame) goes to college in California and promises him a sure thing if he comes to visit over the next break – a girl who is up for a no-strings attached, one-night stand. Gib is all for it, though he needs to find a way to get across country from his snowy Midwestern campus.
He hitches a ride with a few other students, including Alison Bradbury (Daphne Zuniga), who is heading out to visit her long-distance boyfriend. Alison and Gib have a mutual dislike for each other that dates back to the first day of school. As with the other movies, they find themselves in a variety of stressful and unusual situations. They are low on money, which complicates things, and the sexual tension between them heats up as they head west. The movie is funny, though, may seem dated.
As with real-life road tips, it seems that movies makers should take heed – to make one successful, you need to pick the right companions. Unfortunately Galifianakis and Downey Jr weren’t it.
