A Look at British Road Trip Films
Road trip movies are basically a genre all their own in America – we are known for our car culture and love of the open highway. But that doesn’t mean they haven’t made use of this plot device in British films as well. After all it’s not the distance travelled but the purpose behind the journey and what the characters learn about themselves along the way that’s most important.
So if you’re looking for a little of inspiration for your next holiday, perhaps you’d like to check out a few of these…
Heartlands (2002) stars Michael Sheen as Colin Lawes, a meek newsagent who does whatever he can to keep his pampered wife happy. Colin’s passion in life is playing on his local competitive darts team. When he discovers that the team captain, Geoff (Jim Carter) and his wife have run off together to Blackpool for the regional darts finals, the jilted Colin decides to make it his mission to get her back.
The rest of the film follows Colin as he takes to the motorway on his trusty moped. Along the way he meets some new and interesting friends, encounters some challenges and starts to regain the confidence that has been drained out of him by his marriage.
Also featuring Mark Addy, Ruth Jones and Mark Strong, Heartlands is a quirky tale of self-discovery. It’s available to stream on Netflix and Amazon Instant Video.
The premise of The Trip (2010) is that Steve Coogan has been commissioned by a newspaper to chronicle a tour of restaurants in the North of England. His girlfriend wants to take a break and refuses to go along so Steve ends up inviting his friend Rob Brydon to accompany him instead. Playing exaggerated versions of themselves, Coogan and Brydon travel from location to location discussing their careers and family lives while competing in an on-going impersonation contest.
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The Trip has a very mockumentary/improv feel. For those who have ever travelled with a companion, you will certainly recognize the irritability that is part and parcel of an extended close quarters journey.
If you’d like to see those Michael Caine impressions in full The Trip can be streamed on Netflix, Hulu Plus and Amazon Instant Video.
While we’re on the subject of Coogan, let’s discuss a slightly more dramatic road trip. Philomena (2013) stars Judi Dench in the title role as an Irish woman who has hidden the fact that she gave birth to a baby boy in a convent fifty years ago. Subsequently her son was adopted out to an American couple and Philomena has been searching for him ever since.
Coogan, who also co-wrote and produced the film, plays Martin Sixsmith, an out-of-work journalist who is approached by Philomena’s daughter to help her mother find out what happened to her son.
It may not sound like a road trip on the surface, but since the nuns at the convent are not cooperating, Martin does a bit of sleuthing that turns their search towards America. He and Philomena travel from England to Ireland then to Washington DC and environs to solve the mystery.
Many of you are already aware of this brilliant film what with all the accolades during the most recent awards season. Just watching it again on DVD highlighted for me the whole road trip quality of the story. There is the objective to find Anthony to be sure; however, the unlikely pairing of the erudite atheist Martin traveling with the wide-eyed, devout Catholic Philomena and what they learn from one another along the way is the true journey of the story.
If you’d like to see the amazing Philomena again (or for the first time) it can be streamed on Amazon Instant Video. Bet your library or local Redbox has it on DVD as well!
Sightseers (2012) is a very dark twist on the traditional road trip experience. Chris (Steve Orem) takes his new girlfriend Tina (Alice Lowe) on what’s meant to be a proper caravan holiday. Unfortunately, we discover that Chris’ temper has an extremely short fuse indeed. When an incident with a litterbug turns fatal “accident” it’s just the beginning of a murderous crime spree across Britain.
Filmed on locations in Derbyshire, North Yorkshire and Cumbria, the scenery can be quite pretty. You also get a feel for traveling by caravan, a very British way to spend your holidays.
Netflix and Amazon Instant Video both have Sightseers available for your streaming pleasure.
I always like to throw in an unexpected choice on these lists and this time I give you Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975). It’s the ultimate road film when you think about it. First of all there is a quest of pretty epic proportions…
Chapman, Cleese, Gilliam, Idle, Jones, and Palin travel throughout Arthur’s vast kingdom -on mime horses no less. They face dangerous foes and obstacles (except for Sir Robin, of course) all for God and country. Whether confronting rude French knights, the killer Rabbit of Caerbannog or crossing the treacherous Bridge of Death, our gallant knights of Camelot forge onward to fulfill their calling.
There is no streaming service currently offering Monty Python and the Holy Grail but it’s available to purchase on DVD and is a good addition to any Anglophile’s movie collection.
So what do you reckon? If you were taking a British cross-country journey, where would you like to travel and with whom? Also let us know if I’ve omitted any relevant films from my list. I’m always up for a good road trip tale!
