Screenplay:
James MayCinematography:
Ben JoinerComposer:
Paul Leonard-MorganPerformers:
Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, James May, Simon Pegg, David Hasselhoff, Kiefer Sutherland, Jimmy Carr, Casey Anderson, Tim Burton, Roger Daltrey (more)Seasons(5) / Episodes(45)
Plots(1)
Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May are back with The Grand Tour. A show about adventure, excitement and friendship... as long as you accept that the people you call friends are also the ones you find extremely annoying. Sometimes it's even a show about cars. Follow them on their global adventure. (Prime Video)
Videos (2)
Reviews (4)
I like Top Gear. I've even seen a number of episodes more than once, some maybe four times, and I'm not even crazy about cars - I enjoyed the central trio of special hosts, their mutual jabbing, their sense of humor, the endless supply of one-liners and adventurous challenges that the show's producers prepared for them. But I won't be watching The Grand Tour again for even a second, because I didn't see almost anything worth it throughout the whole series, and I was bored more than anything else. Clarkson, Hammond and May are really funny only when they make of each other through improvisation and each other's choice of cars, but otherwise their performance stinks for miles due to a pre-prepared screenplay, and not a very good one at that. Celebrity "killing" may have been funny the first time, but the lesson that repeated jokes cease to be jokes was not taken to heart by the hosts and creators, so each subsequent episode was accompanied by proportionately growing, embarrassing awkwardness. Discussions about what was new also often stalled, and the "American" circuit driver was downright unfunny and even irritating. At best I appreciate the camera, the choice of locations and the overall set, although it was often more in the style of "look how much money we have and what we can afford."
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Hynek! Vilém! Jarmi... Um, Clarksson!!! At the beginning, it is not a completely clean ride (no complaints about the prologue, though, the bombastic concert stage is annoying). The last season of Top Gear no longer reached the qualities of "golden seasons" (except for the specials, of course), so I actually welcomed that 3 commentators left to Amazon. I secretly hoped that it would provide new driving force and that they will play with that slavishly observed and binding unchanging format that had become Top Gear's biggest limitation over the years. Well, the result is that they haven't changed anything except the show/segment names. They really changed nothing. Some people will like it, while others not that much. I belong to the second group, because due to the fact it's almost identical, the biggest drawback of their last seasons at Top Gear hasn't disappeared. I feel only use inertia instead of bringing new ideas taking advantage of not yet lost glory and their cult of personality. We cannot say it's a parody of itself (except for the horrible "kind of Stig"), the three of them are still too much fun and have an insanely large budget and therefore limitless possibilities, but this is actually quite a daily routine for them. Funny and high quality, but already seen, when you know exactly what to expect from one of each of them (which is an even bigger problem when we admit that it has always been much more about them than about cars). There is no moment of surprise. However, the biggest disappointment comes paradoxically in the form of the technical side, as some hipster intellectual came with and idea of processing each sequence by different shitty "Instagram" filter. The result is a excessive nonsense without a unified concept not only as the whole but also in individual parts, because thanks to the cut-ins into cockpits (these are not processed by filters), it is so striking in a way that even striking amateur music on Youtube looks professional. Not to mention a show with a budget that would cover the state budget deficit of many smaller European countries. The result is the funniest and the most excessive routine by far. The question is whether that is enough. And this one (added years later) I will answer myself. Yes, it is. Already during the introductory season, it improves significantly (I mean really a lot). As if they said to each other, look, we don't have to do it just for the money, let's enjoy it. It's clear that they enjoyed it themselves and that, thanks to the Amazon super budget, they can do whatever they want and anywhere in the world (we should pay tribute to the invisible fourth one who is behind the scene, Andy Wilman). On top of that, the (un) novelties are beginning to be sidelined from the beginning and then they fade away (only in the second season it takes a step back in the form of the return of the celebrity segment, the tempo is ruined and it´s no that interesting anymore), only in the third season it gets back on track and gets rid of nonsense. It simply starts to be enjoyable and thanks to that viewers enjoy it too. Undoubtedly the best ever travel-adventure-car show for the real man being on a high wire with hosts constantly messing and competing with each other. Nothing more, nothing less; just #amazonshitcarshow.S1: 5/5 | S2: 5/5 | S3: 5/5 |
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Do you know the difference between American and British humor? No? Just watch The Grand Tour and the original Top Gear and you’ll get an idea. Seriously, it's still awesome and fun to watch, however, the original TV show about cars was turned into a show massively aimed at an American audience, which means that the pure chemistry between the main three presenters was replaced by an unnecessarily detailed script full of shooting, explosions, effects, and unnatural endings that seem to be lacking a point. The first season was filled with nostalgia for the return of the familiar faces, but it’s the second season that will be the crucible and decide whether the British trio will get steamrolled by the unnecessarily exaggerated oh so funny American sense of humor that just doesn't agree with them.
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These bastards made a petrolhead out of me. Not at all by filming a show about cars, but because they are filming one of the funniest and best-hosted formats in contemporary TV (Conversation Street FTW). They have perfected their roles over the years. They took the most useful stuff from Top Gear, unfortunately except for Stig. Almost all of the Amazon novelties flew overboard during the three seasons, and in that (probably definitely the last) only the essence remained - a trio of white, rich aging men, who are mentally age eight and are morbidly attached to their penises. And of course, they are well aware of it. They manage to reflect the absurdity of contemporary ideologies on both sides of the barricades with ease and a sense of edge (special fish for Zimbabwe are one of the all time tops). From total contempt, respect was first born in me, and then I became a fanatical fan. In the final episode, I shed a tear for diesel...
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Gallery (98)
Photo © Amazon Studios
![The Grand Tour - Photos](http://image.pmgstatic.com/cache/resized/w663/files/images/film/photos/168/800/168800772_bmn54d.jpg)