The Daytrippers

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Henry D @Henry_Domke 2d Shockingly good. Great script and well acted. Funny, touching, real. See more Kalissa H. @kali_416 Dec 11 I was entertained. Great acting. See more Soleil C. @bysoleilceline Dec 3 A little story about a family going rogue on Thanksgiving to help one of the daughters track down if her husband is cheating on her. Takes the family roadtrip and turns it inside out by crisscrossing through the city and incorporating different destinations and fun characters as she tries to find the truth. See more Mason M @RT73597940 11/17/2024 An extremely enjoyable and fun addition to the 1990s "movie about nothing" movement. The Daytrippers is an amazingly well done comedy with hilariously clever writing and dialogue, with the whole cast making the interesting family dynamic a delight to watch. This is one of the better films I've seen of its style, and an amazing and hilarious comedy that's bound to put you in a good mood. See more noa r @RT16325647 04/13/2024 felt very wes anderson and more my sense of humour. i admire the concept and feel so much, very "little miss sunshine (2006)" meets "the royal tenenbaums (2001)." when it comes to parker posey, i am seated. THE INDIE QUEEN. i've never seen any of greg mottola's work before, so this has inspired me to watch more. See more Matthew D @OceanSage 04/03/2023 An adorable absurdist trip to give anyone a laugh! Director Greg Mottola's indie comedy-drama The Daytrippers (1996) is a sheer pleasure to watch. Mottola's absurdist sense of humor, lighthearted atmosphere, warm direction, insane characters, and quirky whimsical direction make The Daytrippers feel special. It's such a hilarious comedy and a touching drama with an intimate indie feel to it. No wonder Mottola went on to direct Superbad among other comedy classics. The Daytrippers comes across as genuine, creative, innovative, and delightful in every sense with a stellar ensemble cast! I'm so glad producers Steven Soderbergh, Nancy Tenenbaum, David Heyman, and Campbell Scott got The Daytrippers funded as it's effortlessly charming and sweet-natured. Writer Greg Mottola creates a sad scenario of a kind woman finding out her husband is likely cheating on her, then he turns it into a quaint scenario of her family taking a road trip to New York to confront the philanderer. The Daytrippers is a simple blast of silly stops in New York with a dysfunctional, but supportive family dynamic along for the ride. I like how Mottola's drama gives sympathy to each character a poor woman desperately holding onto the idea of her marriage's fidelity, a discontent sister realizing her relationship is going nowhere, a pretentious writer getting called out for his snobbery and hateful attitude only to lose his girlfriend over that very same personality flaw, a mother trying to keep her daughters' love lives in tact, a father tired of hearing about everyone's troubles, and a husband emotionally reeling inside from his secret. Mottola really nailed this superb script full of outrageous ideas, hysterical conversations, strange encounters, and earnest empathy for his characters. The Daytrippers feels similar to Night on Earth or Moonstruck with a cool indie feel and charming characters with crazy personalities. Hope Davis is a lovely blonde actress with a soft spoken voice and shy manner that makes her heroine Eliza Malone D'Amico very sympathetic. You cannot imagine why her husband would ever cheat on such a loving and beautiful woman. Hope is devastating for The Daytrippers' dramatic heart as everyone is talking about her failing marriage, while she must endure it silently until her final tears. I felt for Eliza the entire time. Hope Davis is a wonderful actress with really subtle expressions in her face. Stanley Tucci is excellent in his brief appearances as the shocking cheater and book publisher Louis D'Amico. His loving introduction feels tender to further stun you when we get the real reveal. His indignant outrage at getting called out for cheating and his frustrated embarrassment over his secret are really exquisite dramatic acting that's also a riot to watch Louis unravel before our eyes. Parker Posey is so sexy and a scream as the hilariously apathetic Jo Malone. She has real heart and curiosity as Jo. Parker is gorgeous and amusing as the party girl, who just wants real passion in her love life. You can tell Jo is immediately attracted to Campbell Scott's intelligent and charming author Eddie Masler, instead of Liev Schreiber's bore, who just talks down to her with a condescending tone and all. Liev Schreiber was born to play the pretentious loser author Carl Petrovic. His dog novel monologues are so funny like his facial expressions when he realizes that he's just a huge loser that everyone hates other than Jo's mother Rita. Anne Meara is sublime as the nosy and demanding mother Rita Malone. Her screaming at her daughters how to live their life, but never yelling at Carl is just too funny. Pat McNamara is great as Rita's quietly seething and bored husband Jim Malone. You can tell he doesn't care about any of these interactions or arguments until it hurts his daughter Eliza. Marcia Gay Harden's alcoholic reeling from a breakup Libby is quite fun at the last party. Paul Herman's appearance as the commanding New York father on the run Leon is excellent. He's very funny and I did not expect his character's twist at all. Editor Anne McCabe's slick cuts keep The Daytrippers down to a tight 87 minutes of all jokes and heartfelt conversations. It feels so fast paced and yet intimate as McCabe lets the conversations flow with sharp cutting. Cinematographer John Inwood keeps us in close-ups for the conversations to really capture the listener's honest feelings about each topic for a laugh. The sweeping panning shots around New York look so smooth. Bonnie J. Brinkley makes a cozy home, cluttered office, and quaint apartments for a raw look to each set. Composer Richard Martinez' film score for The Daytrippers is quite cool. His quiet instrumentation is soothing and creates a relaxing atmosphere for all of The Daytrippers. His music is honestly refreshing and pleasantly light. Sound designers Will Ralston and Frank Morrone drown out most of New York's ambient noise in favor of crisp voice recordings and just softer voices in the backdrop at parties for a realistic soundscape. Barabara Preser's costume designers are so fashionable on Parker Posey, ground and cool on Hope Davis, college chic on Liev Schreiber, and natural on the rest of the cast. In short, The Daytrippers is always funny and surprisingly earnest for all of its sincere drama. See more Read all reviews

The Daytrippers

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