Movie Review – A Big Bold Beautiful Journey

Movie Review – A Big Bold Beautiful Journey Or: The Long Drive to Realization

Some doors bring you to your past. Some doors lead you to your future. And some doors change everything. Sarah (Margot Robbie) and David (Colin Farrell) are single strangers who meet at a mutual friend’s wedding and soon, through a surprising twist of fate, find themselves on A Big Bold Beautiful Journey – a funny, fantastical, sweeping adventure together where they get to re-live important moments from their respective pasts, illuminating how they got to where they are in the present…and possibly getting a chance to alter their futures.

Directed by:
Kogonada

Written by:
Seth Reiss

Produced by:
Bradley Thomas
Ryan Friedkin
Youree Henley
Seth Reiss

Cast:
Margot Robbie
Colin Farrell
with Kevin Kline
and Phoebe Waller-Bridge

Movie Review: A Big Bold Beautiful Journey Or: The Long Drive to Realization

Let’s keep this one short. I saw A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, and while I didn’t love it, I walked away with something unexpected: an epiphany. More on that in a minute.

It’s been a while since I’ve gone to a screener and genuinely enjoyed the film. There’ve been a few bright spots, sure—but lately, it’s felt like a string of cinematic strikeouts. And I don’t go in with a chip on my shoulder. I drive straight from work, sit through traffic for nearly two hours, and I want the movie to be good. I want to come back with something positive to share with moviegoers and the fans of Trending Pop Culture. That’s the goal.

Now, about that epiphany. The next day, a friend at work asked how the screener went. I paused. I didn’t want to be negative—especially now that I’ve realized how draining that can be. So I said, “It was okay.” They gave me the look. You know the one.

We started talking about movies today, and I said something that hit me harder than the film did: “Today’s films are like today’s music—it takes me a long, long time to hear a new one I actually like.” That’s when it clicked. I’ve been chasing the feeling I got from When Harry Met Sally, Pretty Woman, She’s Having a Baby, When a Man Loves a Woman—films that moved me. Not to say those kinds of stories don’t exist anymore, but for me, they’re rare. And comparing new sci-fi to Star Wars or Alien? That’s not fair. But when something like Guardians of the Galaxy (modern-day Star Wars) hits, it feels like the magic’s back. For a little while.

Now, back to A Big Bold Beautiful Journey. This one was a slow burn—and not in the good way. The plot felt scattered, with holes that never got patched. Who were the people at the car rental place? Why David? Why the flyer? As Jadakiss would say: Why?

Colin Farrell and Margot Robbie move through the film like they’re stuck in a slow-motion loop. It didn’t feel like real time—it felt like watching two people go through the motions of a workday. My emotions didn’t budge. Margot almost got me there a couple of times, and she did crush the final scene. If she’d brought that rawness throughout, I might’ve felt differently. She’s a powerhouse. So is Colin. But this journey dragged, and I didn’t buy into their connection until the credits rolled.

So here’s the takeaway: I need to get out of my own way. Hit reset. Pretend I’ve never seen a “You complete me” moment. Maybe then I can start fresh—with new films, new music, and fewer comparisons to the past.

-Jay Katz