In best odd-couple tradition, the pair are polar opposites: Mitch, always with a joint behind his ear, is garrulous and vulgar, kept just this side of sleazy by his big-hearted humour; Colin (what a perfect choice of name), a French horn player-turned-bank teller, is mild-mannered and lugubrious.
Things get a shake-up at the halfway mark when they are joined by Mitch's much younger second cousin Ellen (Crouse) and her friend Janet (McKee), but this is a film in which nothing much happens, and it keeps on happening. Therein lies most if its charm.
Shooting with two handheld cameras, the filmmakers view the human exchanges in close-up, which emphasises the impressiveness of the outdoor vistas. (The film is, incidentally, a comprehensive introduction to the scenic delights of a country that may impress New Zealand audiences less than those who have never seen geysers, waterfalls, hot springs and volcanic uplands, but is nevertheless gobsmackingly beautiful).
What it adds up to is more a series of vignettes than a singular story, but if you adopt Mitch's travelling motto about not being in a hurry to get anywhere, it is very easy to like.
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