Slightly inspired by the 2005 film Mr. & Mrs Smith, Netflix’s Norwegian thriller, The Trip (I onde dager), depicts a dysfunctional couple struggling to kill each other. The film industry background of this husband and wife brings in extra humor through insightful jokes. The Trip maintains its dark humor as it tries to help the couple to reconcile their relationship.
Tommy Wirkola’s directorial film begins lazily but quickly picks up the pace as the action and bloodshed kick in. The flow directly symbolizes the couple’s relationship as it outlines that their relationship lacks the spark in the absence of a conflict. But when it arrives, like in all cinematic stories, it brings action, adventure, and thrill.
‘The Trip’ Plot Summary
A faded film director, Lars lost his dream projects due to financial struggles. Lars procures heavy debt due to his gambling issues. Hence, to pay the debts, he started directing meaningless TV soap operas. After the shoot, Lars informs his actress that he takes his wife, Lisa, to the woods. Lars quotes: Lisa wants to go on a hike.
Lars shares the exact details with his father, Mikkel, who lives in the Toyen Retirement Home. Mikkel is not very proud of Lars’ career choices and subtly hints that enough is never enough for his generation. They are not content and thankful, and that is why they are always disappointed. According to Mikkel, Lars could use war to understand the value of life.
Humiliated, Lars leaves Mikkel and reaches home with trekking tools. He hides the packet from Lisa for some sinister reasons. Together, they leave for the remote cabin near the lake. The argument during their journey establishes that Lisa is an actress struggling to get on set while Lars picks up odd direction jobs to put food on the table. Even though their Trip is to reconnect and reconcile their relationship, the dysfunctional couple ends up arguing.
As Lars enters the cabin, he finds a broken lock and some nachos on the floor. However, he ignores the facts and prepares for his shady business. The following day, Lars takes out the trekking hammer and tries to murder Lisa. But, Lisa targets Lars with a taser gun, and Lars instantly faints.
Lars wakes up and finds himself tied with a rope and Lisa pointing a gun at him. The Trip further explores the couple’s struggle to kill each other and end their dead relationship.
The Uninvited Guests
Lars wanted to kill Lisa to get her insurance money through which he could have settled his debts. Lisa wanted to liberate herself from a cold marriage that wasn’t going anywhere. In their hustle, Lars shot the farmer, Viktor, whom Lars brought in to dismember Lisa because he didn’t like touching the meat. After killing Viktor, Lars struggled to shoot Lisa, but the couple soon found a hidden convict in their attic.
Roy, Petter, and Dave were three prisoners who escaped the state prison three days ago and ended up at Lars’ cabin. The prisoners were waiting for the smoke to settle down before they could move out. But before they could leave, Lars and Lisa moved in. The prisoners hid themselves in the attic. When Lars accidentally shot at the attic, the wooden floor crumbled, and the prisoners fell down from above.
Petter wanted money and thus made an offer to spare the couple’s life in exchange for it. To save their lives, Lisa improvised and lied to Petter that she had one hundred and twenty-five thousand kroner in her bank account. She promised to hand it to the robbers if they promised not to harm Lars and Lisa.
A sane criminal and a mastermind Petter agreed to wait for another day and thus took the couple hostage in the basement. In a close-to-death situation, Lisa retrospected her marriage, trying to figure out how they became so cold to each other. While Lisa felt remorseful, Lars planned an escape to beat the robbers and run away.
The Last Combat
Lars and Lisa together shot the big-muscled Nazi, Roy, while Petter and Dave were out in the woods. Outside the cabin, Dave captured Lisa and Petter tried to put Lars’ head in a lawn mower. Suddenly, Lars’ father, Mikkel, arrived in an electric car and smashed it into Petter. A flashback sequence established that Mikkel’s “young” friend, Hans, called him at night and informed him about a possible breakout in his cabin. When Lars didn’t pick up his phone, Mikkel stole a car to check on his dear cabin.
In combat, Petter stabbed Mikkel, while Lars and Lisa tried to run away in the car. Petter shot the vehicle, and it smashed into a tree. A bleeding Lars requested Lisa to escape in their boat. To avenge his father and eventually become a “man,” Lars returned to the cabin and shot Dave.
A dying Mikkel looked at the sunrise and embraced his son, feeling proud of him. After Mikkel died, Lars quickly ran towards the lake to save Lisa. Petter took Lisa hostage in a boat to get the money she had promised Petter earlier. However, Lars grabbed the rope attached to the boat, and in the final fight sequence, the couple drowned Petter in the middle of the water. In the end, Lisa had the opportunity to drown Lars along with Petter, but she made a moral choice and saved her husband. Maybe, the journey helped the couple to bridge the gap in their marriage.
‘The Trip’ Ending Explained
Lars and Lisa came back to the cabin and sat outside, cherishing the sunrise. Lisa asked Lars the most intriguing question: where did he hide the billiards ball from which he attacked Roy? Lars avoided the question and told her they might have survived the Cabin Massacre, but their future was still underwater. They didn’t have money and were in too much debt.
From their close-to-death experience, Lisa quickly figured out an idea that could become a silver lining. Lisa and Lars sold their surviving tale to the press and got conventional media attention.
In the end, the couple sold their story rights for a feature and earned millions. Lisa became the lead actress in the movie, while Lars directed it. However, they changed the entire scene where Lars licked Petter’s shoes. He designed it in a heroic way where instead of begging for his life, Lars kicked and smashed the robbers. Lars probably thought that the audience was more interested in watching a glamorized hero rather than a vulnerable protagonist.
The Trip is a 2021 Dark Comedy Thriller film directed by Tommy Wirkola. The Norwegian movie is streaming on Netflix.
