LUMI X BFF: Grand Tour Review

Grand Tour follows an account of a couple set to marry in 1917, after British diplomat Edward leaves Burma (now Myanmar) to return to his native London. Instead of marrying his fiancé, Edward decides to sail to Singapore, beginning an odyssey across Asia in which Molly is consistently one step behind him. 

Gomes's approach to shooting regions focuses largely on place rather than time. Boldly, he chooses to cut between beautiful, predominantly interior period sections shot in 16-millimetre black and white, and footage of contemporary Asia, rendered equally beautiful through vivid colour and fluid movement.

Just as the film seems to get slightly too comfortable in its almost binary application of style, Gomes begins experimenting even further. Visual rhymes akin to Terence Mallick’s work begin to seep through both sections, as do layered collages of documentary styled exteriors and moments of screwball comedy.

As this two-pronged approach to time and place becomes even looser, the film becomes confident in establishing and breaking in own rules to create a cohesive, and wholly original visual style. Gomes doesn't seem to care if the sight of a face mask or electric car is going to ruin your engagement with an explicitly period narrative, and Grand Tour is all the better for it.

A pair of excellent performances from Gonçalo Warrington and Cristie Alfaiate make the film even easier to get on board with. Alfiaiate particularly shines as Molly, whose comical level of endurance is charmingly realised through an exceptional portrayal of willpower.

This is encapsulated in her attempt to cross the River Yangzte, where her plight, framed comedically thus far, is made uncomfortably realistic by the presence of dangerous weather. In a stunning moment of facial acting, Molly brashly decides to continue on her journey. Her boisterous exterior is now replaced with an unnerving blanknees as she gazes at her companions, realising that her desire for married life requires facing certain death.

Ultimately, Grand Tour is a thought-provoking and wholly gorgeous blend of classical Hollywood adventure and a YouTube travel video. A transcendental ending, and its accompanying needle drop cements its status as a must-watch.