The ridiculous 'wigs' they used muddled the timeline of the story

Yes, I've often trusted the recommendations of others - if great enthusiasm is voiced, and I'm not already aware of the film, I'll check it out. But I've never been swayed by negativity. If there's a motion picture out there made by filmmakers I respect, or about a subject matter that interests me, I couldn't care less if someone I know doesn't like it. Ultimately, the only opinion that matters is YOUR OWN.

And I don't know if you're aware of it, but it appears the opinions of your friends has already colored your judgement - "Five time periods switching around seems a bit much to cram in a non-epic film." You sound like you're already reached a conclusion, and yet you haven't even seen the film. You've even quoted your friends ("ridiculous wigs") in your subject heading.

Just so you'll know - Two For The Road covers a time period from 1954 to 1966. Finney's character is 21 at the outset and 33 in the final segment (according to their joint passport, Hepburn's character is three years younger). I see no reason why Finney's hair should go grey, as many guys I know didn't find their hair greying until their late 30s or mid 40s. Which is not to say his hair doesn't change throughout the film - during the 1966 sequence, his hair is cut in such a way that it suggests a (slightly) receding hairline. Hence Hepburn's line when she recalls what he looked like in 1954 - "You had hair in those days, of course."

As for Hepburn's different looks throughout the film, rest assured they're distinct enough to tell you exactly where you are in the story. Plus, the cars are there to make the time periods even clearer. And maybe it's just me, but I have no trouble spotting the differences between a Ford stationwagon, an MG, a Triumph and a Mercedes (apart from a few scenes in a VW van, Hepburn & Finney spend the 1954 sequence hitchhiking).

All the time periods glimpsed in Two For The Road ('54, '56, '60, '63 and '66) are treated as "the present" - and these are the words of director Stanley Donen. Yes, you begin in 1966 and end in 1966, which implies the other sequences are flashbacks, but in tone they're not. And though the film is assembled in a non-linear fashion (to point out specific changes in the characters' viewpoints as they grow older), once each specific time period has been established, it moves forward. It may not be a simplistic format, but I don't think it poses any challenges to the reasonably alert filmgoer. In fact, that's one of the things that makes Two For The Road so unique - and so much fun.