Complete A-Z list


Guilt Trip, The

5/10

Stars: Barbra Streisand, Seth Rogen, Brett Cullen, Kathy Najimy, Colin Hanks, Miriam Margolyes, Rose Abdoo, Adam Scott, Ari Graynor, Brandon Keener

Director: Anne Fletcher

Critics on both sides of the Pond have been a little unfair on this Mother's Day-friendly comedy which is full of amusing ideas, but just lacks anything like a decent script. Even so, there are still occasionally both funny and touching moments, and the co-stars play against each other well and show a fair amount of warmth together: you'd like to see them again in something better.

Rogen plays an inventor about to embark on a long road trip with the idea of selling his new organic cleanser at the end of it. Streisand is his mother and in some ways it's a clever reversal of expectations, in that this archetypal Jewish mom doesn't foist herself on her son for the journey; if anything, it's the other way round.

After a while, though, their company does get a little grating, and you long for a colourful array of supporting characters that the screenplay simply doesn't provide. Even so, Streisand is a lot more fun than she was in the Fockers films, and Rogen switches roles nicely to play the opposite of his usual loudmouth.

One footnote: try to avoid seeing the trailer. Pretty well all the most amusing moments are in it.

David Quinlan

USA 2013. UK Distributor: Paramount. Colour by deluxe.
95 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 12A.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 1, Violence/Horror 0, Drugs 0, Swearing 1.

Review date: 08 Mar 2013