Top Gear: The Perfect Road Trip

I'm not sure why I ended up watching this TV movie from the Top Gear team; I'm not really a fan of the show although I generally enjoy it OTT silliness when I do watch it, I wouldn't make an appointment to do so. Either way I watched this feature length show and found it reasonably enjoyable but oddly lacking in what I usually enjoy about Top Gear. The road trip idea is good and sets up a perfectly fine series of steps with different vehicles each step of the way. What this means is that we get a commentary on each car at each step and generally this did not interest me. I understand this is originally a car review show, but I find hearing someone describe their driving experience just about as dull as watching other people play a RPG; and this is made all the more obvious by the presentation of these opinions being pretty flat.

What I prefer is the sense of fun and of enjoyment of the cars and, although this is present in this film, it is not there as much as I would have liked. The lack of flamboyance is also noticeable – with the convertible rally experience being the only thing close. The ending some have said is a fun twist but to me it was a cop-out; if they had planned to deliver on their grand prix goal then they still could have made it happen rather than a sudden and unfunny ending that they had. If the ending felt staged then too much else did as well. They make fun of the absence of May but they could have done with a third wheel because the clash between Clarkson and Hammond doesn't work quite as well without him. Their sequences all feel far too stiff and staged – and I know that of course they are scripted situations, but they feel very unnatural in the most part and their dialogue feels precisely the same.

Despite all this though it just about works because the cars are beautiful – and I say this as someone with almost no interest in them and who sees them as disposable things to get me from point A to point B. Despite this I really did enjoy the way the vehicles were shot – it is a very good looking film when it wants to be. I guess fans of this sort of thing will enjoy it, although it seems stiff compared to other episodes of Top Gear I have watched and personally I found it to be a lot less fun than it should have been and instead rather forced, staged and awkward.

Was looking forward to this ever since I saw leaked shots of the filming on the web.

Very little fooling around here. Just cars, cars and more cars with beautiful scenery and superb music.

The ending was unexpected!

The usual nonsense of the presenters are there (Clarkson cheating, Hammond's 'exotic' food aversion, making fun of James May, etc.)

Somehow Top Gear UK loses some sparkle without James May, which is the case here. The banter between Jeremy and Richard lack a little pizazz at times, but its still good.

Being Top Gear UK fans, my wife and I had an enjoyable evening watching this!

Hi,

Well, i thought i'll be watching a movie and the 7.4 rating usually means something on IMDb (usually but there is some exceptions).

Well, this one obviously is. So, don't watch this unless you really know what you're going to watch and you know you'll enjoy it. Some people enjoy tuning their cars some enjoy beating cats, some might enjoy watching this "documentary" about cars ...

7,4, seriously ? I'd explain that with the fact nobody watch this except me and people who are specifically searching for this.

I'd give it a 0,01 if it was possible ...

Magnificent road trip across Europe with THE best TV presenters. Had a lot of fun watching it.

First of all, Top Gear is known for a great car reviews, brilliant humour and entertainment. This DVD is no exception.

In this DVD you will find: great cars, beautiful sceneries and entertaining hosts (Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond), everything car enthusiast wants.

My personal opinion about this movie. Firstly i loved the idea of the DVD itself, The Perfect Road Trip, because i'm dreaming about going on a roadtrip across Europe myself. What is more, the cars they used were incredible. The humour spot-on. The ending surprising.

This DVD is suitable for everyone from car lovers to families. I think you don't need to be car enthusiast to like Top Gear, that's why Top Gear is so popular.

I gave strong 9 for this DVD, it's really good but something's missing to get 10.