The Daytrippers (1997)
Eliza D'Amico thinks her marriage to Louis is going great until she finds a mysterious love note to her husband. Concerned, she goes to her mother for advice. Eliza, her parents, her sister Jo, and Jo's boyfriend all pile into a station wagon to go to the city to confront Louis with the letter. On the way, the five explore their relations with each other and meet many interesting people.
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Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike
Instant Favorite.
Excellent adaptation.
It's complicated... I really like the directing, acting and writing but, there are issues with the way it's shot that I just can't deny. As much as I love the storytelling and the fantastic performance but, there are also certain scenes that didn't need to exist.
An engaging indie reminiscent of both Neil Simon and Woody Allen, The Daytrippers utilizes a strong cast as a family travel down literal avenues to unravel a mystery over fidelity.Eliza (Hope Davis) is happily married to publisher Louis (Stanley Tucci), until she discovers a love letter that may or may not have been sent to him. Determined to find out the truth, she travels into the city to confront him, aided by her domineering mother (Anne Meara), subdued father (Pat McNamara), sister Jo (Parker Posey) and her novelist boyfriend Carl (Liev Schreiber).The Daytrippers works best during moments with the Malone family together, from Eliza and Jo's sisterly bonding to mom Rita's fawning over Carl. The various derailments and subplots along the way are a mixed bag, the best allowing for some neat interludes from Marc Grapey as a sleazy womanizer, Marcia Gay Harden as a drunken party girl and Stephanie Venditto as a over-excited receptionist.In terms of acting, Anne Meara steals the show as the fiery matriarch of the Malone family, while a lot of fun is created from Carl's episodic reciting of his novel, a pretentious story about a man with a dog's head. Parker Posey, as always, is also hilarious with her sarcastic gags and deadpan delivery.Not particularly memorable but a movie that at least entertains throughout its short running time, The Daytrippers is an enjoyable melodrama strengthened by the realistic familial chemistry between the film's leads.Rating: C+
Greg Mottola makes a very auspicious debut with "The Daytrippers". He directs a terrific cast in what is something of a rarity; a true ensemble piece. Rather than a road movie, this is a street movie with various stations in lower Manhattan. As the journey progresses so too does the family begin to unravel in a manner which is both funny as well as genuinely moving.All give dead on target performances, with highlights from Ann Meara and Lieve Shrieber (whose unravelling is particularly poignant). Hope Davis is as wistfully wonderful as always with Parker Posey, Stanley Tucci, Pat McNaramra and Campbell Scott rounding out the ensemble.A trip you may want to make.
This movie is passionless. There are really no redeeming qualities except for about three times during the entire movie where I laughed. I'm all for low budget dramas, but this looks like it was shot by a porn director. The acting is at a par with high school drama actors. The story is completely unengaging and listless. If you want to learn how to make a poor movie, watch this film.
This is a hilarious film... beautifully-written, hysterically-acted, excellently directed. Rent it. See it. Liev Schrieber is great, and so is Parker Posey. Greg Mottola will be, one day, a great director. He's also a very funny writer, and was able to make a story that's both moving and funny.