The film A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, starring Colin Farrell and Margot Robbie, had every opportunity to succeed at being the romantic film of the year. So, what went wrong?

A Big Bold Beautiful Journey has all the right ingredients. Two talented actors who know how to do their jobs, a straightforward premise with room for emotional depth, and the promise of beautiful, cinematic film making. On paper, that’s a strong recipe for a great romance. However, the final product just doesn’t live up to its potential, and that’s where things get interesting, especially if you love pulling stories apart to look at why they work or fail. So, let’s dig into A Big Bold Beautiful Journey to figure out where this film took a wrong turn.

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The setup is simple. David and Sarah are two strangers heading to a mutual friend’s wedding. They meet briefly at the event, but nothing comes of it. On their way home they each tell their GPS that they want a “big bold beautiful journey,” which results in them both ending up at the same rest stop, and they end up driving back to the city together.

As they drive, they encounter a series of mysterious doors along the way. Each one is unique and transports them into either David’s or Sarah’s past, giving them an up close and personal look at each other’s childhood memories, painful high school experiences, and defining moments of family trauma. Through these shared experiences, they learn about each other’s lives. What starts as a road trip becomes a therapy-like exploration of their histories as they work through issues that have kept them both single for years. The film frames this as a “will they, won’t they” romance, though by the end, the relationship feels more like a deep friendship than anything else.

Colin Farrell & Margo Robbie – What actors can and can’t do

Colin Farrell as David and Margot Robbie as Sarah do everything they can with the material they are given. They’re funny, bright, and charming. Their emotional scenes show their skill as actors, and these two are at the top of their game.

The problem is the writing. There’s no real tension between David and Sarah. They’re honest, forthcoming, and endlessly supportive of each other from the start. That may sound nice, but it doesn’t feel like real life, especially for two people with so many emotional rough edges. Relationships are messy and they are hard. They come with misunderstandings, awkward moments, and friction. You have to earn the emotional connection that worms its way into your heart and brain. This film skips the struggle, jumping straight to mutual understanding, which immediately reads as friendship, not romance.

The result feels like watching two people go through therapy sessions rather than falling in love, and it just doesn’t resonate as romance. Farrell and Robbie make this a watchable film, but it misses that deeper connection that you expect with a romantic comedy/drama. And why does every romance lately have to be a comedy/drama? Pick a lane people!

Cinematography – Why it works

One of the strongest aspects of this film is its visual artistry. Kogonada’s direction is cinematic, with sweeping landscapes, close-ups that linger on faces, carefully composed colors, and lighting choices that elevate the emotional beats. The production design, costume work, and hair styling all fit beautifully into the overall tone.

This is not a cheaply shot streaming romance that looks made for Netflix or Prime. It looks and feels like something made for the big screen. The artistry and vision is there. Unfortunately, even the most stunning visuals can’t compensate for a script that lacks tension and surprise.

The Problematic Story Structure

A simple story can be a gift in a film like this. It allows space to deepen characters and conflict without diverging into a dozen subplots. Here, the simplicity becomes the problem. The plot is predictable to the point of being flat and the only surprise is that there are no surprises.

It plays out like a checklist: their cars break down, they each rent a car, they meet at a wedding, they end up driving home together, they stop at doors, they revisit memories, they share insights, they don’t get together, and then they do get together … and then they walk through one final door. There’s no fighting, no twists, no personality miss match (which should have been a given because of the one somewhat “twisty” reveal at the end). Watching it feels like hearing two people recount their day. We went to the store, went to lunch, went to the gas station, had dinner, and then went to bed. It’s not dramatic, it’s not romantic, and it’s not memorable. It’s just safe and bland.

As the film progresses, it started to feel like the the idea for the movie was inspired by a road trip with friends who passed the time by sharing a bunch of stories that felt like walking through doors into each others’ pasts. Voila! The idea of a romantic film about magical doors was born! I have no idea if this is actually how the writer Seth Reiss came up with the idea for the film, but this is exactly what it feels like. While it’s a clever idea, there is far too much focus on the doors and not enough on the creation of drama and friction between the characters. As a result, the film missed opportunity after opportunity to turn up the romantic heat for David and Sarah.

The Fantastical Tropes

The most unique element in the film is the fantastical GPS and the car rental agency, which plays out like the evolution of modern-day Cupid … if the Greek god of love became a car rental agency. Again, it feels like and idea that could have worked, but didn’t. Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Kevin Kline bring some wit and charm to their small roles. However, the concept that drives the story, pun intended, feels forced and neither Waller-Bridge or Kline really look comfortable in their roles.

Then there are the agency’s doors, which are the magical center of the film. They don’t actually take Sarah and David into the past. Instead, it all happens in their heads as a shared mental experience. It’s a clever idea on paper, but the execution makes it feel contrived at best, without stakes for either of them. The setup is too neatly arranged by this match-making supernatural agency that has created a formulaic set of events that never really cost either character anything to experience and have no real consequence for success or failure.

The story could have been so much better if only it had pushed David’s and Sarah’s emotional connection future. Or maybe their experiences could have been more than memories. Maybe they could have actually altered the past, or maybe the whole trip was only ever in their minds and they never left that roadside rest stop. Instead, the rules are too clear and too safe, making the result predictable rather than magical, and eliminating any real chance for a dynamic romantic arc to emerge.

Missed Opportunities that the Romance Genre Needs

I am sure that I am not the only one that has been on a road trip from hell that turned into a fantastic bonding experience. When you are stuck in a car with someone you don’t really know, you expect moments of conflict with arguments over music, snacks, or bad jokes. Those small things are what creates opportunity for romantic chemistry and personal connections. None of that happens here. They never fight, never misunderstand each other, never even rub each other the wrong way. Without that friction, there’s nothing to balance the warmth, so the romance never feels earned.

Imagine if David and Sarah had clashed over music choices before discovering a guilty pleasure song they both secretly loved. Yeah, we’ve seen that a million times, but something like that would have made this film better.

What about snacks? Snacks are practically their own character on any road trip. Have one of them eat the last cookie, or argue about whether beef jerky is acceptable car food because it stinks up the car. Maybe someone spills soda in the cup holder and then they keep getting sticky crap all over their hands. Those details sound silly, but they create tension, humor, and chemistry.

Or maybe David cracks a bad joke that pisses Sarah off, which would give him the chance to realize he doesn’t want to make her angry because he likes her. That’s human, that’s messy, and that’s where relationships start to feel real and where you start to realize where your emotional edges connect or clash with someone else.

Recommendation – Should you watch it?

So, is Big Bold Beautiful Journey ticket-worthy? For most audiences, I don’t think so. Farrell and Robbie give strong performances, but the writing never lets David and Sarah’s relationship grow into something authentically romantic. That failure undercuts the entire premise of the film.

Despite gorgeous cinematography, thoughtful production design, and a premise that seems ripe for conflict, the story remains predictable, emotionally shallow, and ultimately unsatisfying. What should feel like two people falling madly in love instead plays out like watching friends share therapy sessions.

That said, I do think there are people who will enjoy this film. It is safe and predictable. However, if you’re a die-hard fan of Colin Farrell or Margot Robbie, or if you love romantic stories no matter how flat, you may find enough here to make the theater experience worthwhile.

I don’t really drink much, but I had the distinct impression that if I did, this film would have been better with some red wine and ice cream, while scrolling through my social media and posting photos of my dachshund Mabel.

Final Thoughts

So, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey wasn’t worth the price of admission for me. I’d still love to hear from you. Did I miss something? Am I wrong? And what do you think about reviewers who review films they don’t really enjoy? Let me know in the comments below.

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