Movie Review: A Big Bold Beautiful Journey (2025)
I was torn about writing this review – mostly because I only saw the beginning and the end of A Big Bold Beautiful Journey. The middle? A heartfelt deep-dive… into the back of my eyelids. If that doesn’t tell you everything you need to know, maybe the furious rant from the girl in front of me when the credits rolled will:
“The trailer was a lie. This was the worst movie I’ve ever seen. I can’t believe how horrible it was.”
Same, girl. Same.
Marketed as a drama, this film had me expecting a sweeping emotional epic à la About Time or Age of Adaline. Instead, we get Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell as two trauma-wounded strangers – matchmade by a suspiciously unvetted car rental agency en route to a wedding – who embark on a fantasy-fuelled journey of self-discovery through random doors into their past lives. Much like therapy, if your therapist handed you a set of Narnia keys and said, “Good luck, babe.” And now I understand why those sessions are confidential and should stay that way.
The start was intriguing, if slightly… sideways. Rain and colour are used as thematic devices, and the cinematography leans heavily into off-kilter framing, which, in retrospect, reflects the characters’ emotional unease. I get it. I appreciate it. And to be fair, it’s done in a visually striking way. Red, blue, and yellow dominate the palette, making the film instantly recognisable. The soundtrack, however, is a bit much – slightly too loud, almost caricatured in its timing and tone, adding to the overall feeling that something’s not quite right.
When Phoebe Waller-Bridge popped up in the opening scene – donning a gloriously bad German accent for comedic effect – and pulled out an actor headshot of David (Farrell), I had a moment of panic. Was this going to be yet another Hollywood self-flagellation film about the agony of being an actor? (My least favourite genre). Thankfully, it backed away from the edge. Kind of.
Robbie, as always, is wildly watchable – though her character’s oddly flat accent seemed like a directorial misstep. Farrell’s David, on the other hand, never rises above petulant, sad-sack energy. I kept waiting for a breakthrough or redemption arc… but was instead treated to a sulk marathon with a vaguely justified emotional backstory. Sarah (Robbie), by contrast, is compelling – seemingly normal on the outside, clearly unravelled within, and dressed in red throughout, as though she were a literal walking red flag.
The film flirts with magical realism – a sat nav as emotional compass, forest doors leading to formative memories – but it lands somewhere between quirky and flat. It wants to say something profound about healing, love, and vulnerability. But the pacing drags, the tonal shifts are staccato in nature, and the end result is less “emotional catharsis” and more “Hinge cautionary tale.”
Maybe this was made for a different audience – the ones who’ve been on their 30th app date of the year and are finally realising they might be the problem. Maybe it’s meant as a wake-up call to stop ghosting people and start therapy. Noble message, if that was the goal.
Poorly executed, if it was.
And that’s unusual for Margot Robbie, who’s normally a box office heat-seeking missile. But this time? The big bold beautiful journey was a big bold beautiful snooze.
Not for me. Maybe for you. Or maybe… you prefer to watch good movies.
Rating: 1 Choctop out of 5
Director: Kogonada
Writer: Seth Reiss
Stars: Colin Farrell, Margot Robbie
Genre: Drama, Romance, Fantasy
At least the company is comfy
