A Big Bold Beautiful Journey

When it comes to the genre of fantasy, they are typically original in their premise which makes them a refreshing change from the typical sequel, franchise, remake, reboot and the like. The originality of them attracts me, and so when I saw my first trailer of "A Big Bold Beautiful Journey", my first thought was that this film was definitely possible, and I was right. 

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 the guidance of a GPS (Jodie Turner-Smith) and 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.

Others to round out the cast are Phoebe Waller-Bridge as Female Cashier, Kevin Kline as The Mechanic, Lily Rabe as Sarah's mother, Jennifer Grant as David's mother, Hamish Linklater as David's father, Lucy Thomas as Amanda, Brandon Perea as Mike, Julian Zane as Eddie Bora and Joyce Guy as Doctor Vernon. 

This was directed with pathos and compassion by Kogonada ("Lunch Line" (co-director) '10, "Late Summer" '12, "Columbus" '17, "After Yang" '21) plus TV, shorts and videos. The way this filmmaker was able to encourage his actors, specifically Farrell and Robbie, to show how they just happen to meet where this was purely a setup was genius. The chemistry between these two actors was amazing and this is talented directing. This was whimsically written by Seth Reiss ("The Menu" '22) plus a plethora of TV and shorts. Even though this writer has only one feature film to his credit, he has a ton of TV and shorts which have served him well. His feature film, "The Menu" was a film that was obscure and quirky which, like this film, was an original piece of work. This film was fresh, concise, cohesive and tight all rolled into a completely entertaining way. As aforementioned, the chemistry was truly effective between Farrell and Robbie which is the mark of creative, effective writing. Being a fantasy, one must put aside a good amount of reality in order to enjoy this story, because it simply doesn't go by the usual norm. The story becomes poignant at different aspects of the film whereas both David and Sarah are pushed to confront their issues and therefore slowly become intertwined with each other. This script is complex in some ways, however definitely simple in others, and this is another compelling intriguing feature of the film. 

If you like fantasies, this is one you will truly love. It's got reality that becomes intertwined with fantasy which, in my book, makes this more captivating and enticing. And with all the films out there that are ripoffs of one another, it is incredibly refreshing to see a film that is original yet entertaining all in the same film.

Out of 4 Stars: 4                                 Rated: R                                      109mins.