Two for the road

– Jason Beck
HOLLYWOOD’S go-to loon of the moment, Zach Galifianakis, continues the mayhem in this latest outing.
From nowhere, Galifianakis stole The Hangover and Dinner for Schmucks right out from under the rest of the cast.
He plays a similar role here, in classic loner nutbag style.
Typecast? Yeah, maybe, but he’s still fun to watch.
Given his drug-fuelled past, Robert Downey Jnr will never be a straight man, but he is the “straighter” man here to the other player’s unabridged lunacy.
After a not-so-chance meeting, the pair are thrown off a flight and into a car together, setting the scene for a road buddy movie with a twist … they’re far from buddies.
Working to a tight timeline of the birth of his first baby, and handicapped by having no cash, the scene is set for some volcanic Downey outbursts.
Highlights include a thoroughly satisfying car crash, and Downey being comprehensively smashed by a wheelchair-bound Iraq veteran (trust me, it’s funnier than it sounds).
During his anger magnet outbursts, it’s hard to believe Downey is not channelling himself.
In summary, Due Date is a capable two-hander which is not great, not terrible, but hits a quite satisfying middle ground.
If road movies are your thing, then this will fill the bill quite adequately.