A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, the fantastical romantic comedy starring Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell, opened to largely mixed-to-negative reviews this week, with critics faulting the film's script and tonal balance even as they praised its lead actors.
Review aggregators show the film sitting at 56 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and holding a Metacritic score of 39, figures that reflect a spate of two- and three-star notices from major outlets. Several reviews described the picture as miscalculated or overly sentimental, while noting the chemistry between Robbie and Farrell.
Directed by Kogonada, the film follows Sarah (Robbie) and David (Farrell), who meet at a wedding and are swept into an otherworldly journey that allows them to relive milestone moments from their past. Critics said the high-concept premise is undermined by a script that never coheres into a satisfying romance or fantasy.
IndieWire's Ryan Lattanzio wrote that the film "is miscalculated as a romance and a fantasy," and questioned the screenplay that underpins Kogonada's vision. William Bibbiani of The Wrap headlined his review "Colin Farrell and Margot Robbie Can’t Save This Insufferable Romantic Fantasy," arguing that the performers were not given "something meaningful to perform." Variety's Tomris Laffly cited stylistic flourishes such as lens flares and needle-drop music but concluded the project ultimately resorts to what she called "an unfortunate bore." Screendaily's Nikki Baughan described the movie as "wading through sickly sweet treacle," even while acknowledging the leads' chemistry.
Kogonada, who earned acclaim for his 2017 debut Columbus and for directing After Yang (2021), has taken on a larger-scale, more commercial project with A Big Bold Beautiful Journey. Reviewers suggested the director's move into a blockbuster-leaning romantic fantasy did not match the expectations set by his earlier, more restrained work.
Robbie, who produced through her LuckyChap company and returned to the screen after the birth of her first child last year, said in interviews that the script felt "exquisite" to her and that she was drawn to its "original, magical and romantic" qualities. She added that she would "obviously love to do a love story with Colin Farrell." Farrell described working with Robbie as "a dream" from "start to finish."
The film's release arrives amid a high-profile press tour in which Robbie has drawn attention for her red-carpet fashion. It also coincides with a busy period for the actor: she will return to promotion next year for the Emerald Fennell adaptation of Wuthering Heights, scheduled for February release.
A Big Bold Beautiful Journey opens in cinemas on Sept. 19. While the leads' performances and the film's visual touches drew some favorable notes, reviewers largely agreed that the picture falls short on storytelling and tone.
The mixed critical reception is notable given Robbie's recent commercial success; she both starred in and produced Barbie (2023), which grossed $636.2 million domestically and $1.445 billion worldwide. Observers and critics will likely watch box office returns and audience reaction in the coming days to see whether the film finds a warmer reception from moviegoers than from critics.