A Big Bold Beautiful Journey ★★★★

Released: 19 September 2025

Director: Kogonada

Starring: Colin Farrell, Margot Robbie, Kevin Kline, Phoebe Waller-Bridge

With previous films Columbus and After Yang, Kogonada has really made a name for himself on the arthouse cinema scene, earning rave reviews for both. His latest offering A Big Bold Beautiful Journey comes with a far larger budget of $45 million and reunites him with After Yang lead Colin Farrell, joined by Margot Robbie.  It is a meditation on life, loss, and regret that pays tribute to classic musicals, French cinema, and Studio Ghibli.

David (Farrell) & Sarah (Robbie) are both somewhat adrift in life, going through the motions, but neither has reached a sense of happiness or purpose, clinging to regrets from their youth. A chance encounter at a mutual friend’s wedding sees them interact and begin the titular journey, led by a mysterious GPS.

Even though the canvas might be larger, there is still the sense that this is clearly a Kogonada film, his voice adjusting slightly to the landscape of a studio film. While it can be a tad messy and overly saccharine in places, there is a real beauty at its heart, with some gorgeous visuals to sweep audiences up in the journey. There is plenty of dry humour and quirkiness as well, to help separate it from the films it’s influenced by.

Farrell and Robbie are rarely off-screen, with the duo carrying the film as their journey gets more and more personal and the pair discover more about one another. From a visit to a lighthouse David once travelled to alone, a high school performance, or a hospital, there is plenty of variety and colour to the interludes but they remain deeply personal, showing how much David and Sarah have in common despite their initial doubts and the importance of their developing connection.

There are shades of Richard Curtis’ About Time here, with the character revisiting moments from their past, interspersed with the works of Jacques Demy, particularly The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, through the use of visual metaphors and colourful umbrellas. There are also nods to Studio Ghibli films and the film even features a first live-action score from Ghibli alumnus Joe Hisaishi, a gorgeous score accompanied by an eclectic soundtrack featuring Mitski, Wilco and several pieces by Icelandic jazz-pop superstar Laufey.

Certainly more expansive than Kogonada’s previous work, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey may be a film that comes in for reconsideration in the years to come. Even if not everything lands perfectly, there is much to admire from the visuals, score, soundtrack and quirky humour.