Review: The Trip to Spain is a major work of mindless banter for Coogand and Brydon fans

REVIEW: Trip to Spain is yet another highfalutin hangout movie from Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon, with fine food and funny impersonations.

THE TRIP TO SPAIN (M)

Rating: three stars (3 out of 5)

Director: Michael Winterbottom (The Trip to Italy)

Starring: Steve Coogan, Rob Brydon.

Scores level in third round of imitation game

Here comes another highfalutin hangout movie from British comedians Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon.

If you have seen either of their first two efforts (2010’s The Trip and 2014’s The Trip to Italy) then you know exactly what will happen here.

L-R: Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon never do anything by the book. But they sometimes do things near a book.

Playing faintly fictionalised versions of themselves, the pair motor from one five-star food joint to other.

Most gaps between main courses are filled with improvised meaningless banter that consistently amuses. Select pauses are cleared for melancholy phone calls back home. Or to continue the stars’ never-ending rivalry as vocally acrobatic celebrity impressionists.

With so much running time used up by the go-to impersonations in Coogan and Brydon’s repertoire (Michael Caine, Roger Moore, Marlon Brando etc.), there isn’t much room left for fresh material.

However, a riff on who David Bowie would have chosen to follow on Twitter shortly before his untimely demise is wonderful, inspired stuff.

Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan take a breather between main courses of cuisine and comedy. Hard work, but someone’s gotta do it.

Coogan and Brydon are unapologetically serving up more of the same, so this third instalment won’t be winning many new converts to the cause.

But if you have dug their past work, the pair remain exceedingly great fun on an eavesdropping basis.

And of course, the killer cuisine on display - and one spectacular rural Spanish vista after another - will not be deemed offensive to the senses in any way.