This film is, in fact, not a comedy at all, but rather one of those light entertainment films which is classified as a comedy simply because it's not a drama. It's basically a road movie, since the vast majority of the film takes place during a classic car drive to and from Brighton in England. Two somewhat friendly rivals participating in the annual event, one of whom drives a car called Genevieve, decide to race each other there, taking their reluctant wives with them. Most of the purported humour in this film consists of each car taking turns to break down. As one car breaks down, the owner of the other car drives past and gloats, only to have his car break down soon after and the other car start up again. This happens many times during the race to Brighton, with the lead changing each time.
The highlight of the film is the night the couples spend in Brighton - more specifically, the mildly entertaining musical item performed by one of the wives, who turns out to be quite an accomplished trumpeter. During the stay, there is some suggestion that one of the wives has had an affair, but the characters are so entirely dull and the rest of the film is so shallow and plotless that this sub-plot fails to offer any redemption. After the night in Brighton, the couples simply race home again, making the second half of the film just as unfunny and boring as the first half.
I try to avoid vitriol in my reviews, but in this case I must make an exception for the sake of an accurate summation. This is one of the most appallingly unfunny, unendurable, pointless, excruciating pieces of cinema I have ever had to sit through. Every attempt at humour goes down like a lead balloon, there is hardly a story to speak of and all of the characters are cardboard cutouts. Clearly we are supposed to be on the side of the couple riding in Genevieve, and yet both of the couples are so intolerably immature and unlikable that it's impossible to care at all about who wins the race. If you like intelligent films, then avoid this at all costs. If you like mindless fluff, then there are still a hundred other pieces of mindless fluff you'd be better off watching than this rubbish. I tried to like this film, especially given all the positive reviews on this site, but save for the nice cars, I found nothing whatsoever to like about it.
The highlight of the film is the night the couples spend in Brighton - more specifically, the mildly entertaining musical item performed by one of the wives, who turns out to be quite an accomplished trumpeter. During the stay, there is some suggestion that one of the wives has had an affair, but the characters are so entirely dull and the rest of the film is so shallow and plotless that this sub-plot fails to offer any redemption. After the night in Brighton, the couples simply race home again, making the second half of the film just as unfunny and boring as the first half.
I try to avoid vitriol in my reviews, but in this case I must make an exception for the sake of an accurate summation. This is one of the most appallingly unfunny, unendurable, pointless, excruciating pieces of cinema I have ever had to sit through. Every attempt at humour goes down like a lead balloon, there is hardly a story to speak of and all of the characters are cardboard cutouts. Clearly we are supposed to be on the side of the couple riding in Genevieve, and yet both of the couples are so intolerably immature and unlikable that it's impossible to care at all about who wins the race. If you like intelligent films, then avoid this at all costs. If you like mindless fluff, then there are still a hundred other pieces of mindless fluff you'd be better off watching than this rubbish. I tried to like this film, especially given all the positive reviews on this site, but save for the nice cars, I found nothing whatsoever to like about it.