? Care for a blast from the past? In their latest film, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, Korean director and filmmaker Kogonada — famed for Columbus (2017) — and screenplay writer Seth Reiss, who wrote the 2022 psychological thriller The Menu, present a love story that is as fantastical as they come. Its protagonists set about a journey of self-(re)discovery as they dive back into their pasts, triggering a series of events that would see them changed for good.

Here’s how the cookie crumbles: David (Colin Farell) is a lonesome man in his forties who finds himself riding solo to his friend’s wedding. When his car breaks down on the morning of the big day, he turns to a peculiar car rental company. Upon getting there, David finds the place is a vast, empty warehouse with two identical vintage car models that haven’t seen the light of day in decades.

Things keep getting weirder when he’s greeted by two eccentric employees (Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Kevin Kline). Out of options, David picks a car and heads on the road. At the wedding party, he meets Sarah (Margot Robbie), a woman that — despite being as lonely — isn’t looking for love. Instead, she lives her life jumping from one fleeting relationship to another.

“Would you like to go on a big, bold, beautiful journey?” This is the question David’s rental car asks him (by way of the GPS). Following the GPS’s instructions, he meets Sarah once more, and finds out she rented the second car from the agency — and was asked the same question. What’s the journey, you may ask? A trip back in time to relive their memories.

Don’t judge a book by its cover — or a movie by its title. While the film’s grand title suggests an equally grand film, we couldn’t help but feel disappointed. While the premise was exciting, unfortunately it takes much more than that to deliver a cinematic work that… well, works. From dialogue to character development, we found the film lacking. The idea of going back to the past is a clever one, but were the memories the movie decided to highlight really worth revisiting? We’d argue not.

That said, the film does deliver on certain fronts. Some dramatic moments made up for an otherwise lacking script — all thanks to the cast’s performances. Certain scenes — such as Sarah’s memory of her late mother — stood out in a positive light. The soundtrack, cinematography, and color grading were all points in the film’s favor. However, they still did not cover for the writing, which gave us muted characters, a convoluted plot, and humor that didn’t quite land.

Are we being too harsh? Perhaps. It’s possible that we just had too high expectations that weren’t met. When two stars like Farrell and Robbie join forces, we’d expect to see a film that, even if not spectacular, would at least make for a good time. In any case, perhaps it’s worth finding out if your experience is better than ours — and we hope you truly have a big, bold, beautiful journey.

WHERE TO WATCH- You can catch A Big Bold Beautiful Journey at VOX Cinemas at City Center Almaza, Mall of Alexandria and Mall of Egypt, City Stars Cinema, and Scene Cinema at CFCM and District 5. The movie is also screening at Cima Arkan and P90 Cinema. Watch the trailer on YouTube (runtime: 3:23).

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