The Trip

A captivating small film dealing with the relationship of two gay men over many years and the surrounding upheaval of the gay movement. Many wonderful supporting performances contribute to the overall goodwill of the film. Sirena Irwin is a sketch as Beverly the trend jumping Greek chorus and Jill St. John an absolute scene stealer as Alan's boozy wise mom but the entire cast even in the smallest roles are splendid. The musical score is also loaded with excellent choices which really set the right tone for each scene. It all boils down however to the chemistry and performances of the two lead actors which are strong and makes you really like and root for the characters throughout their journey.

I attended a screening in SF, but found myself unable to speak while the director and two stars were standing before me. So now that I've found my voice again, here goes: While he falls short of achieving his goals, I believe it is because he has set the bar too high for himself. It seems he wanted to do so much in this film, that it was impossible for him to say everything that he wanted to. I am sure that making a film about gay men can be difficult. We want the love story of "Beautiful Thing", the comedy of "Trick", the hunky cast of "Broken Hearts Club", and the tear-jerker sadness of "It's My Party". Mr. Swain tries to do, be, create all of these things in one package. He came respectably close to doing it.

I enjoyed the film, it felt contrived in places, which may have had as much to do with the editing as it does with the fact that this is Mr. Swain's first film. Given time, his voice and vision will mature, and I can't wait to see what happens as it does.

See this film, we need more like it.

Having seen virtually every gay-themed film that has ever been made and having received A+ grades in all the film studies courses that I took in college, I would like to weigh in on the excellent unique first effort that is "The Trip" written and directed by very talented newcomer Miles Swain. You already know the basic plotline, timeline and substance of The Trip if you have read IMDB's information. My overarching impression of this film is that it feels real and from the heart as it shows us the relationship between two very different gay men as they age through the '70s and '80s, living their lives both together and apart amidst the ongoing struggle for equal rights for gay persons. They say opposites attract and that is very true here for lead characters Larry and Alan who clearly grow to love each other very much. The focus of this film is on the complete persons who are Alan and Larry, not just their sex life, as in so many gay-themed films. Although AIDS unfortunately affects their lives, it does not affect their enduring love, and the director has rightly said that "This is not an AIDS film". It is a delightful, moving, comedy/drama/historical record with universal themes of trusting the power of a faithful love, the importance of honesty and courage, and being true to yourself in the face of a world seemingly always against you. The film is now available on DVD with great extras from TLA Video and is very reasonably priced. It is a *must have* for any quality collection of gay-themed films.

The only reason that I rate this film a ten is because the rating scale on IMDB doesn't reach 227. The Trip isn't just a film - it's an extraordinary, a true gem about everything that matters in life - people, relationships, pride in one's self, matters of the heart and soul. The film shows what can be achieved when millions aren't poured into special effects and high-priced superficial "talent". I saw The Trip on the last day of the Philadelphia Gay and Lesbian Film Festival 2002. The timing was truly fitting, because it was a fantastic grand finale to a festival which included many other fine films. The Trip, however, was by far, the best of the festival and, in my opinion, walked away with the award for Best of Everything in all Categories. The film follows the relationship between two men starting from 1973 continuing into the 80's, giving an opportunity for many political and social commentaries having to do with the times, including Anita Bryant and Ronald Reagan, and gay rights. There was also much opportunity to fill the film with with many truly hysterical fashions and one-liners inspired by those times. These qualities make The Trip a wonderfully balanced film with both genuinely funny moments along with many warm, heart-teasing scenes too, particularly because the characters are so constantly involving, as is the superbly written storyline. The cast is outstanding, to say the very least. Larry Sullivan and Steve Braun are excellent, both simply amazing as the lead characters, Alan and Tommy. Steve Braun is so charming as Tommy, and Larry Sullivan easily steals everyone's hearts - including mine - as Alan - he's truly wonderful. To portray a Republican with as much heart and vulnerability as Alan displays is no small accomplishment, and Larry Sullivan does this with commanding skill. Sirena Irwin and Alexis Arquette are terrific in supporting roles, but it is Jill St. John who steals every scene she enters as Alan's mother, reminding us that she should be seen More, More, More! It's rare that a director displays such talent and skill in a film while, at the same time and in equal parts, shows such joy and love for his craft. Only a truly talented director could accomplish this, making his hard work appear so effortless, resulting in the most fun an audience has had in years. Please see The Trip if you have the opportunity - don't let it pass you by. And to any distributors that may read this - please take notice of this movie. Please help this truly wonderful film to be seen by everyone as it should be.

This movie presents the zeitgeist of gay history post-Hippie through the early-AIDS era. It pans this period in a Forrest Gump-esque fashion: intermixing the romantic plot between the main characters with brief moments from the national plight of gays & lesbians (like the Anita Bryant crusade, Harvey Milk's assassination, losing loved ones to AIDS). As a GenX'er I found this to help personalize something which I have only read about in GLBT history classes. I'm sure it will be "the trip" down memory lane for those guys 40-something and older. Brilliantly written script, excellent acting. If you're looking for a good snuggle movie to watch with your next boy friend, partner, trick, whomever -- this is a must see.