Even Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell Can’t Charm Their Way Out of This One

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Comparing *A Big Bold Beautiful Journey* to *Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind* is generous, to say the least. Surprisingly, the new film by Seth Reiss and Kogonada actually had a bigger budget. However, its characters, David and Sarah, feel much less real than Joel and Clementine from the 2004 classic. Even before the story gets fantastical with a magical GPS and teleporting doors, they don’t come across as believable people. We don’t know anything about their lives – they live in a city that’s never named, and we don’t see them at work or with any friends other than the people they meet at a wedding. They share a flirty moment while watching the rain, but when their initial connection doesn’t quite spark, the universe steps in to force a road trip where they can explore each other’s pasts. And even *then*, these attractive people stubbornly avoid a relationship, acting more like reluctant animals in a zoo than potential lovers.

The movie isn’t about David and Sarah falling in love, but rather about them running out of reasons *not* to be together. The chemistry between Colin Farrell and Margot Robbie – he with a natural charm, she radiating even with unusual costumes – suggests they *should* be a couple. This raises an interesting question: even if someone claims to be happy alone, do they owe it to themselves to explore a good relationship? However, the film, *A Big Bold Beautiful Journey*, doesn’t really explore that idea. It assumes David and Sarah are just avoiding deeper problems and turns into a predictable, somewhat bland, journey of self-discovery where they overcome their personal issues to find happiness as a couple. Instead of therapy, they’re guided by a mystical GPS (voiced by Jodie Turner-Smith) that sends them on a road trip after a wedding, both driving cars rented from a quirky agency run by Kevin Kline and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. This GPS leads them to mysterious doors hidden in the countryside, and each door transports them to important moments from their past.

I think this movie really *tries* to make David and Sarah feel like more than just their pasts, but honestly, the whole story keeps circling back to key moments in their relationships. They end up feeling defined by their romantic histories, almost like unfinished self-help books. David gets a slightly lighter touch – he tends to idealize women before he actually gets to know them, then feels let down. But Sarah… she pretty much lays all her cards on the table early on, admitting she always ruins things by being unfaithful. She’s presented as this alluring, troubled character, the type who practically *challenges* you to believe you could be the one to fix her, and that’s a really frustrating trope.

Despite good actors, ‘A Big Bold Beautiful Journey’ ultimately feels like a missed opportunity. While Colin Farrell and Phoebe Waller-Bridge seem lost, and the supporting cast – including Billy Magnussen, Sarah Gadon, Lily Rabe, and Hamish Linklater – are underused in roles representing fragmented memories, the film’s biggest issue lies with its direction and script. Mark Reiss, who co-wrote the clever ‘The Menu,’ and director Kogonada, known for his subtle films like ‘Columbus’ and ‘After Yang,’ both struggle to find the right balance. Kogonada manages a few beautiful moments, like a scene of the leads exploring a darkened museum, but the script relies too heavily on characters explicitly stating their feelings, which clashes with his usual understated style. Ultimately, the film explores the idea of a relationship existing only in theory, never truly becoming real – a frustrating realization that suggests the journey we seek is internal, but leads to no real progress.

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2025-09-16 19:54