VIMooZ

 THE TRIP TO ITALY directed by Michael Winterbottom.

The program lineup was unveiled today for the 23rd Annual Florida Film Festival, taking place April 4 to 13, 2014, in Maitland and Winter Park, Florida. FFF will screen more than 170 feature and short films representing 26 countries, along with celebrity guest appearances, forums and parties. The festival opens with Florida Premiere of THE TRIP TO ITALY directed by Michael Winterbottom.

Michael Winterbottom’s largely improvised 2010 British TV series-turned-feature-film, The Trip, had comedians Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon playing variations on their own public personas as they went on a restaurant tour of northern England. In this hilarious and incisive follow-up, the director has reunited the pair for a new culinary road trip, retracing the steps of the Romantic poets’ grand tour of Italy and indulging in some sparkling banter and, thankfully, more impersonation battle-royales. On assignment by The Observer to write about some high-end restaurants and historical sites along the Italian peninsula, Rob enlists the on-hiatus-from-Hollywood Steve to join him on this new journey. So off they go in a rented Mini-Cooper, enjoying mouthwatering meals in gorgeous settings from Liguria to Capri while riffing on subjects as varied as the latestBatman flick, the artistic merits of Alanis Morissette, and of course, the virtue of sequels. As the camera captures the idyllic Italian landscape and the gastronomic treasures being prepared and consumed, THE TRIP TO ITALY effortlessly mines the chemistry and brilliant comic interplay between Coogan and Brydon. Thankfully, we’re all along for the ride.