Title: A Big Bold Beautiful Journey
Director: Kogonada
Cast: Margot Robbie, Colin Farrell, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Hamish Linklater, Lily Rabe
Where: In theatres near you
Rating: 2.5 Stars
Fantasy romances are delicate: too much whimsy can break their charm, and too much seriousness might overshadow the fun. This film moves between these tones, leaving audiences feeling a bit unmoored, somewhere between a daydream and a winding road trip. Director Kogonada, known for his meditative Columbus and After Yang, seeks here to blend melancholy with magical portals. While the result doesn't always bring these elements together seamlessly, the film shows ambition in its attempt to mix introspection with adventure.
The premise is bold enough. Two emotionally stunted strangers, David (Colin Farrell) and Sarah (Margot Robbie), rent identical cars equipped with a mysteriously sentient GPS that insists on playing matchmaker. As doors literally open into the characters’ past traumas, missed mothers, botched love confessions, and theatrical humiliations, the film gestures towards profundity but rarely delivers. The problem isn’t ambition; it’s execution. Instead of sweeping us into a grand adventure, the film resembles an overlong corporate workshop where you’re forced to revisit your “inner child” with strangers.
A Big Bold Beautiful Journey Review: Margot Robbie And Colin Farrell Shine In When The GPS Knows More About Love Than You Do |
Actors' performance
One can appreciate the efforts of Farrell and Robbie, both known for lending magnetism and depth to their roles, though here their talents feel somewhat constrained. Farrell’s charm is tempered by the film’s narrative choices, while Robbie’s usual sparkle is more understated. Their chemistry doesn’t always fully ignite, but their commitment to the roles remains visible.
Supporting players, Kevin Kline and Phoebe Waller-Bridge as eccentric car-rental employees, have some playful moments, even if the humour doesn’t always land. A sentient GPS voiced by Jodie Turner-Smith becomes a memorable presence, highlighting the film’s creative ambition.
Music
Kogonada’s visual polish remains impeccable: soft hues, deliberate framing, and an occasional lens flare that looks imported from a perfume commercial. Yet, this carefully arranged aesthetic feels like a showroom: stylish but sterile. The whimsical doors, portals to life’s great regrets, should feel wondrous; instead, they appear conjured by a budget-conscious set designer moonlighting in existential philosophy.
Musically, the film leans on “needle drops” and a melancholic cover of “Let My Love Open the Door.” It’s the kind of playlist that works perfectly for a yoga retreat but falters in generating narrative momentum. The lone bright spot: Farrell gamely singing in a flashback school musical, which hints at the kind of eccentric energy the film desperately lacks.
FPJ verdict
Overall, this film is neither big, nor bold, nor particularly beautiful. It is, however, a journey, one that begins with curiosity and ends with the audience glancing at their watches. The fantasy conceit promises magic, but instead delivers metaphors so blunt that they might as well be printed on motivational posters.
For Indian audiences accustomed to love stories that balance melodrama with emotional immediacy, this Anglo-American experiment may feel frustratingly detached. Kogonada’s trademark restraint, so affecting in his earlier work, here neuters a premise that cried out for playfulness. If the GPS were truly wise, it would have directed both characters, and perhaps the audience, straight back home.
