Year of Release: 2021
Director: Tommy Wirkola
Starring: Noomi Rapace, Aksel Hennie, Atle Antonsen, Christian Rubeck, Andre Eriksen, Nils Ole Oftebro, Stig Frode Henriksen
Genre: Action, Comedy, Horror
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 3
Watch it on Netflix
Synopsis and Review
Tommy Wirkola, the writer/director known for the series "Dead Snow" has since expanded his footprint to other films such as "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters" and even the more recent "Violent Night", films that have been met with mixed audience success and poor critical reception. "The Trip/I Onde Dagger" follows the story of Lisa and Lars, an apparently well to do couple who decide to go to their cabin for the weekend. The cabin has been an inheritance from Lars' family, whose father is now in a retirement home. Both Lisa and Lars despise each other and accuse each other for their shortcomings in terms of financial and career success. Lars plans on killing Lisa and giving the impression she had an accident while on a hike, whereas Lisa plans on killing Lars and giving the impression he died while fishing. When they arrive at the cabin they're surprised to find it unlocked, but move according to their plans. Their handyman Viktor shows up, as planned, to help with Lars' plan, but things go awry, and eventually Lars kills him. As the couple continues to squabble and their fighting escalates, they uncover three criminals who have bee hiding in their attic. Lisa and Lars suddenly have to help each other and fight for their lives.
"The Trip" starts in what some might say is a darker take on Danny DeVito's "War of the Roses", however it lacks the humorous tone and the magical chemistry that Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas always had. However and as the narrative unfolds, it turns into a sort of "Deliverance" meets "True Romance", with the couple trying to save themselves from some nefarious forces and having to join forces in order to do so. The main problem with this film is that while trying to portray a dysfunctional couple, it never really gives much information in terms of who these characters actually are. Lisa is an out of work actor, and Lars is a director having to work on television since he can't get any other jobs. Neither are ever more than those archetypes, and though we learn that she's had an affair and he has gambling problems, that's pretty much all we get get from these two. It's difficult to understand what brought them together, and why they've stayed together. By the time the criminal troupe comes along, it adds a layer of gore, but never a layer of actual menace and danger. The tone is borderline gore slapstick, which can work if you're a talented film maker such as Sam Raimi, but not so much in this case. The great Atle Antonsen tries his best at bringing some gravitas and menace to a thankless role, but the director can never properly set an environment in which it can really soar and give the film the edge it needs. The film oscillates between being a comedy with an edge or a thriller with comedic vibes. In the end it's neither, emphasizing the gore to somehow keep things afloat and the viewer's attention focused. Atle Antonsen, Christian Rubeck and Andre Eriksen, with little character development as they have (they're a darker version of the Coen Brothers fugitives from "O Brother Where Art Thou"), end up being the most memorable characters. Production is meager and unremarkable. Gore does not equal interest, which sums up this film.
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