Rooooad Trip!

Despite fighting the startings of a cold this weekend, I also saw a movie.

Due Date (2010)
Starring: Robert Downey, Jr., Zach Galifianakis, Michelle Monaghan
Directed By: Todd Philips

It took nearly four years for director Todd Phillips to follow up Old School  with The Hangover (no, Starsky and Hutch doesn't count), but the turn around for his follow up to the comedy smash of 2009 was relatively quick. Due Date is your typical road trip between a normal guy and a crazy, slightly psychotic fellow traveler, and while the comparisons between movies like Planes, Trains, and Automobiles may be apt, it's the star power of the film that really makes this movie stand out.

Robert Downey, Jr. plays Peter, the "normal" guy who is just trying to make it back home to California for the birth of his first child. However, after an altercation with Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis) places both of them on the "no fly" list, Peter reluctantly accepts Ethan's offer of driving him to California. What follows are your typical road-movie mishaps (car troubles, running out of money, etc.), but the way that RDJ and Galifianakis play off of each other really makes some truly funny moments, and in many ways I enjoyed this comedy more than The Hangover (blasphemy, I know).

This relationship between the two characters is what truly makes the movie for me. There are moments where it seems like Downey truly hates Ethan, not to mention the fact that his character is kind of an asshole to people. But there's still a lot of humor to him, and one scene in particular  regarding a child will definitely be a major talking point for people who view the film. Galifiankis is hysterical as always, and there are some moments in the film where we get glimpses of his potential as a dramatic actor as well.

Fans of both Robert Downey, Jr. and Zach Galifianakis don't need to be told to see this movie, as they most likely already have. As a fan of both actors, I've obviously seen the movie, and I really enjoyed it. The jokes in the movie hit my funny bone nearly every time, and I'm a major sucker for road trip movies. As of right now, Due Date is one of the funniest films I've seen this year, and definitely a major crowd-pleaser, so I give it Four Shakesbeards out of 5.