The Trip to Italy (Blu-ray)

Michael Winterbottom's largely improvised film the Trip took comedians Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon or semi-fictionalized versions thereof - on a restaurant tour around northern England. In this witty and incisive follow-up, Winterbottom reunites 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 impersonation-offs. Once again Coogan and Brydon enjoy mouthwatering meals in gorgeous settings from Liguria to Capri while riffing on subjects as varied as Batman's vocal register, the artistic merits of "Jagged Little Pill," and, of course, the virtue of sequels. Equally hilarious and insightful, THE TRIP TO ITALY effortlessly melds the crackling chemistry between Coogan and Brydon to create a brilliantly comic rumination on the nuances of friendship and the juggling of family and career.

Starring: Steve Coogan, Rob Brydon, Rosie Fellner, Claire Keelan, Ronni Ancona, Robert Brydon, Marta Barrio, Timothy Leach, Ronnie Ancona, Rebecca Johnson

Director: Melissa Parmenter

Rating: NR