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Movies / On DVD / The Trip
The Trip

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The Trip (2003)

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39 %
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Reviews Counted: 31

Fresh: 12

Rotten:19

Average Rating: 4.9/10

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 1 hr 35 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:May 9, 2003 Limited

Synopsis: In 1973, Alan Oakley, a 24 year old Republican journalist working for the Los Angeles Chronicle, has a promising future sure to make his military father proud. At the other end of the spectrum,... In 1973, Alan Oakley, a 24 year old Republican journalist working for the Los Angeles Chronicle, has a promising future sure to make his military father proud. At the other end of the spectrum, certain to strike shame into conservatives everywhere, is Tommy Ballenger, a 19 year old Texas native relocated to California to form OUT LOUD, a gay civil rights group. When a chance meeting brings these opposites together, the attraction is obvious to everyone except Alan, who is desperately trying to stick to the program. Stumbling all the way, the neurotic Alan falls in love and the two form a loving relationship. During Anita Bryant's 1977 nationwide homophobic "Save Our Children" campaign, a jealous older lawyer, Peter Baxter, orchestrates the publication of The Straight Truth, an anti-gay book Alan wrote before he met Tommy. The book becomes a best seller, destroys Tommy's credibility and causes their break-up. Alan seeks solace in Peter's arms, not knowing Peter is responsible for his heartbreak. By 1984, Alan has settled for a life with Peter, though Tommy is never far from his thoughts. When word arrives that Tommy wishes to see Alan, Alan's fey friend Michael, ex-girlfriend Beverly, and understanding, ex-Vegas showgirl mother Mary, persuade him to go after his true love. Reunited in Mexico, Alan and Tommy take the road trip Tommy always wanted but a series of unfortunate incidents have them running from the law. While racing towards Tommy's parents in Texas, Alan and Tommy must make up for lost years with the Federales hot on their tail. On this redemption journey, Alan finds the strength to finally be himself. -- © Falcon Lair Films [More]

Starring: Steve Braun, Larry Sullivan, Jill St. John, Ray Baker

Starring: Steve Braun, Larry Sullivan, Jill St. John, Ray Baker, Sirena Irwin, Julie Brown, Alexis Arquette

Director: Miles Swain

Director: Miles Swain
Screenwriter: Miles Swain
Composer: Steven Chesne
Studio: TLA Releasing

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Release:

Dec 9, 2003

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for The Trip

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Despite its flaws, it eventually gets under your skin and is sweetly moving.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
09/25/03
Randy Cordova
Arizona Republic
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There is absolutely nothing that hasn't been said more compellingly and originally somewhere else, and said often.

Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | comment Comment
09/05/03
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel

The story's third-act detour into tragedy is predictable and unwelcome, providing a resolution that is too pat and familiar to be moving.

Full Review Source: Miami Herald | comment Comment
09/05/03
Rene Rodriguez
Miami Herald

It's ... drenched in melodrama, saddled with a forced plot and surrounded by so many character stereotypes that the film almost becomes self-parody.

Full Review Source: Des Moines Register | comment Comment
08/14/03
Jeffrey Bruner
Des Moines Register

By the time it's over you'll be able to fill a bumper sticker with everything you've learned.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
08/01/03
Wesley Morris
Boston Globe
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There are a couple of good aspects to “The Trip,” particularly Steve Braun’s performance, that will appeal to its niche audience.

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
07/29/03
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews

Pack your sequined T-shirts, your favorite bell-bottoms, and a sturdy houseplant and get ready to take a sentimental trip with two guys who will first have you laughing and then shedding a tear or two.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
07/25/03
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com

For a film with so many problems, it is awfully hard to dislike.

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
07/25/03
Laura Clifford
Reeling Reviews

The soft personal story is caught between history, including the coming of AIDS, and Swain's reach for sitcom bitchiness and final pathos indebted to Midnight Cowboy.

Full Review Source: San Diego Union-Tribune | comment Comment
07/21/03
David Elliott
San Diego Union-Tribune

The screenplay has huge holes, character motivations are inexplicable, the tone switches from serious to loopy and back to serious, and the editing is choppy and uneven.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
07/21/03
Charles Ealy
Dallas Morning News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The acting in The Trip is inconsistent, and I didn't really buy the conflict at its heart, but it's a big-hearted movie.

Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press | comment Comment
07/11/03
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press

The Trip almost dares you not to like it, even when its script heads in all the wrong directions.

Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | comment Comment
07/10/03
John Monaghan
Detroit Free Press
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The movie's strength is the rapport between the two appealing leads. It's hurt, though, by shifts in structure and tone.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Daily News | comment Comment
06/20/03
Gary Thompson
Philadelphia Daily News

Riddled with romantic and political cliches but is often redeemed by the charismatic performances of Braun and Sullivan.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Inquirer | comment Comment
06/19/03
Carrie Rickey
Philadelphia Inquirer
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The Trip handles some of its seriocomic moments awkwardly... but, anchored by solid acting and deftly managed scenes, it’s a project that bodes well for nearly all the young talent involved.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Today | comment Comment
06/09/03
Brent Simon
Entertainment Today

Like being stuck in the backseat on a lengthy family expedition with nothing to do but play that license-plate game, The Trip is an extended journey into boredom.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
06/05/03
E! Online

A journey well worth taking, encompassing a tender, wrenching love story set against an 11-year span of the gay rights movement, from 1973 to 1984.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
06/05/03
Kevin Thomas
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

As so often happens in queer moviemaking, the attempts at raucous humor distract from the lovers.

Full Review Source: L.A. Weekly | comment Comment
06/05/03
Chuck Wilson
L.A. Weekly

This is a trip where you will likely find yourself asking, 'Are we there yet?'

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
06/02/03
Curt Fields
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

[Swain] takes too many cheap shots at paper-tiger antagonists, and settles for melodrama when quiet warmth would suffice.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
05/29/03
Bruce Westbrook
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
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