Ah, the era of the Travel Bug. People want to travel the world, and they will use their profession as a means to do it, if at all possible. This means that, in the case of the film industry, we keep seeing a multitude of films cropping up in which the filmmakers thinly veil a plot over their vacation, and sell the product. The problem is, they don't really try too hard -- 9 times out of 10, the plot is -- get this -- about two people going on vacation. And more often than not, that's literally all the plot boils down to.
This is exactly the case with LAND HO!, a film about two retirees who go on a trip to Iceland together. Mitch (Earl Lynn Nelson), with his Southern twang and overwhelmingly vulgar tongue, pays for the expenses, merely asking Colin (Paul Eenhoorn), his quiet-natured former brother-in-law, to accompany him. Throughout their vacation in the starkly beautiful Icelandic landscapes, they meet various characters -- new friends and old -- who punctuate their trip with oscillating demeanors. Some scenarios feel incredibly awkward, especially when laced with the vulgarity of Mitch's character, but some scenarios come across as sweet.
The run-ins with this multitude of characters begin to capture a small sliver of the joy of travel, portraying the diversity of the people you can meet and the beauty of the sights you can see. But there isn't much more that this film boasts... There is a very small attempt to cultivate Mitch and Colin's personalities and pasts into the plot, but it only goes so far, and while some of their conversations are endearing, it's nothing that you can't get from having a casual conversation with your grandfather.
I have no complaints for Nelson and Eenhoorn's performances, but in terms of story and characters, the film was more than a little disappointing. If you want a taste of the beauty of Iceland, you'll get that from LAND HO! But don't expect it to be anything more than that.
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