REVIEW: “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey” (2025)

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With so much negativity and division in the world today, “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey” might either deeply resonate with some viewers or feel overly sentimental to others. While some may find it too heartwarming, others are likely craving a feel-good movie like this right now. I personally hoped it would be one of those films, but unfortunately, it didn’t quite live up to its promise.

“A Big Bold Beautiful Journey” is the third feature film by Kogonada, who first gained recognition as a video essayist. His previous films, “Columbus” (2017) and “After Yang” (2021), were memorable for their beautiful visuals and unique storytelling style. While his latest film is a bit more accessible to a wider audience, it still retains the calm, thoughtful pace and introspective quality of his earlier work.

While Kogonada’s skillful direction is impressive, the film ultimately suffers from a weak script. He’s known for directing his own stories, like in “Columbus” and “After Yang,” but this time he worked with a screenplay by Seth Reiss. The script isn’t without merit; it has genuinely touching moments, allows the characters to grow, and explores themes of memory and introspection – all areas Kogonada often focuses on. However, these strengths aren’t enough to overcome the script’s fundamental flaws.

Despite its promising title, “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey” doesn’t quite deliver. The script feels rushed in places, taking shortcuts and dragging at others. The story often jumps ahead without enough explanation, and the pacing frequently slows to a crawl. This makes for a surprisingly slow and ultimately unsatisfying experience, as the film lacks depth despite its ambitious premise.

The movie boasts impressive stars in Colin Farrell and Margot Robbie, but their connection feels forced. The story really needs a spark between them, but doesn’t quite deliver. Farrell plays David, a solitary New Yorker traveling to a wedding. He stops at a car rental place, simply called *The Car Rental Agency*, and meets two quirky employees (Kevin Kline and Phoebe Waller-Bridge). They hand him the keys to a 1994 Saturn, which comes with a rather unusual GPS system.

David has a charmingly awkward first encounter with Sarah (Margot Robbie) at a wedding. She’s open and playful, sharing a flirty moment with him before they go their separate ways. Later, as David is leaving, his GPS surprisingly leads him to a Burger King, where he runs into Sarah again. This chance meeting sparks an unexpected journey of self-discovery. Guided by the GPS, David and Sarah travel to various isolated doors, each of which magically transports them to different points in their pasts.

Despite leading very different lives, David and Sarah both feel a sense of inner emptiness. The most compelling part of the story is how they explore their pasts to understand themselves. While some of the journeys into their pasts are insightful and well-done, others feel too long or predictable. Ultimately, the story’s biggest weakness is the conversations between the characters. Although the actors try to make the dialogue meaningful, too many exchanges feel pointless or don’t add much to the story.

The film leaves the origins of David and Sarah’s connection, and the forces guiding their path, a complete mystery. It doesn’t offer any explanation, hinting at fate, destiny, or something beyond that, but never delving into it. While a stronger film might not *need* these answers, I found myself wanting more from “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey.” Kogonada’s beautiful visuals held my attention for a while, but ultimately, my fondness for the actors, Farrell and Robbie, made me wish they had a more compelling story to tell.

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2025-09-22 17:58