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Road Trip: Unrated! Uncensored!

What's a college boy to do when a videotaped affair is mistakenly mailed to his long-distance girlfriend across the country? It's an issue every young man must eventually face, and Road Trip bravely tackles this sensitive subject with thought, warmth, butt-humor, and breasts. In the tradition of National Lampoon, this thin, bawdy, and consistently amusing comedy hits all the required targets with fair aim, and improves on formula with a charismatic collection of young actors. Breckin Meyer — excellent as the reformed stoner in Clueless — gives a crucially winning performance in a part otherwise defined by utter failure as he races with his friends from New York to Texas to intercept the incriminating video. His motley companions on the trip are an amiable pot-head prodigy (Paulo Costanzo), a timid, razor-thin geek (DJ Qualls), and a purely sociopathic horn-dog (Seann William Scott), and each performer manages through force of personality to overcome potentially dull (and offensive) limitations. The real gem in the film, however, is comic sub-genius Tom Green, who — despite his reputation as yet another Gen-X buffoon — is a tirelessly inventive performer. Also with pleasant Amy Smart, Fred Ward, Andy Dick, and director Todd Phillips in a foot-sucking cameo. This "Unrated! Uncensored!" DreamWorks special edition DVD features apparently less than a minute of excised, arguably R-rated nudity. Good anamorphic transfer (1.85:1), audio available in DTS, 5.1 or Dolby 2.0 Surround. Also features 10 minutes of deleted scenes featuring some quality Tom Green moments, a five-minute on-set documentary with Green, a music video from The Eels, and trailers. Keep-case.
—Gregory P. Dorr


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