Rating: 
Summary: Not Bad
Review: I don't want to give the impression that this was a bad movie, because it wasn't. I do, however, want to say that I do not think that it is deserving of all the praise it has recieved. The character development was rather poor, and the plot was threadbare, but it did provide some enjoyment. It was light, and full of laughter, and obviously did not take itself too serriously. I would recomend renting or watching this movie on pay-per-view before purchasing it. The major complaint I have with this movie is that it did not build the relationshi between the characters, and it is impossible to understand some of the actions done by the characters without some type of development. I think there was potential there, but not a lot of follow through. More like a last minute effort at throwing things together. All in all I think it's not a horrible movie, but it isn't worth having in a collection.
Rating:
Summary: well intentioned but lacking depth
Review: in the eternal search for a gay film that embraces romanticism and realism i bought this - high in the hope this quest would be fulfilled, sadly no. It starts off relatively well with some degree of frisson, banter and repartee between the two main leads, one of whom assists in the viewing by being major eye candy, but as the film progresses it loses direction and its own identity, Too much is crammed in, the jokes are poor at best, the political references lacking focus and the identification with the main leads disappears. The acting is not exactly top class and many of the actions/motives are poorly explained or just not believable, we speed through the 70s and 80s and end up just not caring that much for either of them. My heart sank when i realised AIDS was involved - yet another gay film where we are all victims or ill or die - how refreshing it might have been just to have any other illness associated and it would have lost none of its dramatic impact. Whilst there is a last final scene which hints at what the film might have been and raises a smile- a car bonnet is involved - the plot has completely lost its way by this time and I just felt it was all a bit naff - sadly....this film said nothing to me about my life or offered any kind of beneficial perspective - well done for intention perhaps but 2 out of ten for end result
Rating: 
Summary: Great movie, touching and funny
Review: My partner and I loved this movie. It is funny, witty, true to life in many ways, unafraid, and so touching. The only thing that is not good about it is that they characters are wearing wigs while they are supposed to be in the 70s and 80s that are just hideous. This is not a big budget film so I put that aside and focus on the story.
Rating: 
Summary: Epic Romance or History Lesson?
Review: Spanning fifteen years through some of the most turbulent periods of gay history, The Trip aims to be an epic romance. While it falls somewhat short of that lofty goal, it is still an enjoyable tale. Alan, a young closeted conservative republican, meets gay activist Tommy at a party in 1973. Against all odds, the two fall in love and begin their life together. Four years later, Peter, a jealous older man, manipulates their lives in order to break them up. Alan turns to Peter for comfort and spends the next seven years in a closeted, controlling relationship with him. In 1984, Tommy sends word to Alan that he is sick and would like to see him again. With encouragement from his friends and family, Alan leaves Peter to reunite with Tommy in Mexico, where the two former lovers set out on an eventful road trip.Set against a backdrop of dramatic historical events, the movie could have been powerful and moving. Instead, it glosses over much of that rich history with flashes of vintage newsreel, and the story suffers from too many shifts and mood-swings. Writer/Director Miles Swain tries to blend humor and drama, but the results are uneven at best. The lead actors, Larry Sullivan as Alan and Steve Braun as Tommy, are quite good and they even have some evidence of chemistry. Jill St. John shines as Alan's accepting mother. Unfortunately, the direction and story just didn't give them enough to work with, and at the movie's end, you're left feeling as if there was something missing overall. The ending is especially flat and something of an anti-climax. It felt as if they ran out money or energy...and maybe both.
Rating: 
Summary: LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS MOVIE!!!!!!!!!
Review: After seeing the usual generic and preachy gay themed "after school specials" that all revolve around "following your heart" and being "true to yourself" to find happiness, it's a delight to run across a film that doesn't insult your intelligence or rely strictly on cliché to gain a few knowing chuckles. Even The Trip's deliberately "campy" characters are enjoyable, not grating, like ditsy New Age candle-burning Buddhist turned Scientologist Beverly, who believes ménage á trois is French appetizers. The performances are enormously winning the script is smartly written
and it provides a poignant and insightful and occasionally hilarious overview
of life during a crucial period of gay life and liberation in this country. With his skillful depiction of Tommy and Alan, Swain creates a powerful character driven tale that is the cinematic equals to works by Edmund White and Tony Kushner.
What might have been a disastrous premise -- Alan is a closeted Republican, Tommy out and politically active -- finds unexpected results thanks to the formidable imagination and crackling dialogue of director/writer Miles Swain, who conveys the palpable emotion between these two men in a way that is at once utterly charming and unflinchingly honest. The connection between these men is infectious; as Alan and Tommy fall in love with each other, it's hard not to fall for both of them yourself. Swain doesn't soapbox, focusing instead on a genuine love affair between two people who need each other. This is actually a movie
of evolution. Over a thirteen-year period, the main characters evolve into people they never thought they could be. Overtones of Midnight Cowboy,
Kissing Jessica Stein and even The Graduate. It's richly woven together and contains a soundtrack mirroring the time periods and the characters' lives. The Trip feels respectful, without resorting to Priscilla-Queen-of-the-Desert-style over-the-top gay stereotypes. The Trip is well worth the journey.
Rating: 
Summary: Why can't someone make a good gay date movie
Review: I was undecided about buying this movie but then I saw a trailer and thought it looked pretty good. I ordered it, and really wanted to like it, but I just couldn't. This muddled mess seems to have been an attempt to roll every bad movie cliche ever done into one movie. In addition it tries to be sad at times, madly comic at times, and light-heartedly humorous at times, achieving nothing but a weird unevenness. The only theme that could remotely be considered unifying is the ridiculously simplistic portrayal of nearly every (...), fire-breathing, hate mongers. Come on, surely we can do better then that! And hopefully somewhere, sometime, somehow, someone will start to make gay movies that are better than this sad thing.
Rating:
Summary: And What a Bad Trip It Is...
Review: The Trip bears the distinction of being the absolute worst film I saw in 2003. Trotting out one cliche' after another, The Trip purports to chronical the experience of two gay men from the late 1960's through the early 1980's. What results is a vapid take on any number of potentially compelling issues. Sure the direction is clumsy and the acting often less than adequate, but the single most appalling aspect of The Trip has to be the writing. The attempts at humor and social satire are downright painful. This isn't a movie one laughs at so much as grimaces over. The attempts at pathos and gravity are pure sap and sentimentality. The dark-haired lead (who can remember names in this mess) has a certain teddy-bearish charm, and the rest of the cast struggles valiantly, but few actors could overcome such hollow emotionality and lame humor. The women in the film might as well be cartoon characters. Even the wigs in the late 60's segments look phony (they are, however, the funniest things in the movie). One might wonder if The Trip qualifies as a "good bad movie", but, alas, doesn't even merit that recommendation. It lacks the wit and intelligence to qualify as campy fun. Bad trip? Bad trip and a half.
Rating:
Summary: 'The Trip' was the best ride ever!
Review: This love story is more than powerful to every gay couple out there. There are no words to describe how much of a wonderful job the director did. This story is shows how not only straight people have to deal with dilemmas but gay have even bigger ones and that gays are just as equal as staright. I would recommend this movie to every gay person out there.
Rating:
Summary: I thought it was corny and boring.... not a bad end though.
Review: Look, the cover was great but once I turned this dvd on those 70s wigs were so bad (fake) that I couldn't concentrate on much else, except perhaps the bad acting from Larry Sullivan and that awful voice.... masculine not. Body, yeah pretty good. Some nice footage in the film from seventies rallies. Some funny lines too, nothing side splitting though. The end is kind of good though, not least because the actors take off those bad wigs but also because there's the first genuine display of synergy between these two blokes. The film is corny and the actors are not convincing lovers, until the end. You won't be doing cartwheels over this one mate.
Rating:
Summary: Cover Me
Review: After re-watching the film a second time -with the commentary on - I was struck on how the movie resembled too much like late 1970's and early 80's TV shows. Director Miles Swain talks about the film stock they used -which was near the same they used during the era. He talked on the limitations of working on an indie film (how one location home was redressed many times to represent other locales) -something that seems to run through the fabric of these films in general. He also mentioned how -probably very unintentionally- how veteran character actor's Ray Parker and James Handy roles became almost "Dynasty" villains. Looking back, then, The Trip becomes nothing more than any other gay themed film of the last few years. Which doesn't mean the movie is not bad, just an amicable attempt at rising above the narcissism that perpetuates most films of this genre. So I don't hate it, and sometimes you can't, because the movie's leads work so well together. Both Larry Sullivan's Alan and Steve Braun's Tommy bring a fresh of the breath air to their roles, and since their chemistry works, you almost want to follow them through to the end. However, the meandering plot sometimes does get in the way, and from the time that Alan and Tommy split you can figure out where the film will find its ending. Which is to say, not a strike against it, but the emotional contribution is suddenly gone. So, toward the end, you feel you're being manipulated -will they make it across the border or not? Raise you hand if you can't figure it out? Still, I enjoyed the backdrop of the film, exploring the gay movement between 1973 and 1984, from Anita Bryant to the Reagan era (I kind of ignored a lot of that stuff, as I was a gay teen at the time, and was hiding deep in the closet). The archival footage helped enhance the story, giving it a little more depth. And the always and very underrated Julie Brown shines in an oh to brief cameo, and Alexis Arquette -the gay indie version of Parker Posey -does a good job of playing Jack McFarland from Will & Grace (or is that the other way around?). Sernia Irwin is wonderful as Beverly, who really goes through more of a transformation anyone, but it's Jill St. John who camps it up, and delivers a funny -if stereotypical -portrayal as Alan's mom Mary. She steals every scene she's in, but if every mother were like her when they figure out their sons are gay and doesn't bat an eyelash at it, we would all be better off. But the centerpiece to this film is Sullivan -channeling Scott Bakula during his Quantum Leap years (during the gas station sequence in Mexico, the dialogue exchange between Alan and Tommy reminded me of Sam arguing with Al) - and Braun. They work wonderful together and seem very comfortable as gay lovers (on the commentary, Sullivan does seem to go out of his way to assert his heterosexuality, while Braun remains ambiguous -though I'm left with the impression he is straight. Damn). And while that is not enough to hang your film on, it does help cover up some of the flaws of the script and Parker's "Dynasty" style villain. And because these two actors work so well together, it's still worth a risk. Miles Swain's attempt is admiral, as he is obviously attempting to say something about the lives of gay men during the mid to late 70's and the beginning of the Plague Years. It's only halfway successful, but a good try. Meanwhile, I did enjoy the documentary, as I kind of like the silly sense of humor it takes on, and the 10 deleted scenes are worth a look (with the commentary on, of course). There is the films obligatory trailer, of course, and a handful of other trailers for other TLA film releases which will have me at the video store a couple more times (hello, can't wait for Latter Days).
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