A Big Bold Beautiful Journey

Ethel Cain wrote a wonderful piece last year about what they referred to as the ongoing “irony pandemic”. This refers to a growing issue where people (especially younger people) struggle to exist in sincerity, where things are so quickly made fun of that many fear showing any openness, passion, or heart. While we can all be proponents of this type of behavior, which is particularly accelerated by the anonymity of internet interactions, it is more subconscious for some than for others. Some are unable to fully engage with stories that wear their hearts entirely on their sleeves. As we live in a world that is increasingly demanding more realism and reflection in the media they consume, I fear that we are unknowingly losing whimsy in the process. This brings us to Kogonada’s latest film, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, a magical and almost childlike fairytale that very much wears its heart on its sleeve and is largely being dismissed by early viewers. Yet if you are on board with the storytelling the film is channeling it will be hard to resist the charm of the film.

From the first inciting incident, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is clearly evoking the peculiar, larger than life worlds of The Phantom Tollbooth or classic Disney films, with a wonderful score by Joe Hisaishi helping usher in the innocence of the film’s adventure. The film then meets the two lead characters as they fall in and out of love on the titular journey, going through their past and learning about each other on the way. Even though the dialogue is not the strongest, Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell are so charming that they are able to elevate every line to convey the intended chemistry. The concept of these doors taking you to different times of the character’s lives is not the most novel idea, but its execution is simply wonderful. There is a calmness and earnestness to the way this is approached that makes it feel all the more real. These little snapshots of their pasts build up these broken people and excellently flesh out both them and the world of the film. As we reached those last few doors, the film became incredibly emotional and moving. Motifs like the umbrellas, the constant rain, the needle drops from Laufey create this magical, cinematic world of romance that makes the film all more delightful and warm. The whole conceit of the film doubles as a great analogy for the weight of loving another person: the joys and pains of knowing them deeper and the excitement of learning their stories. It takes such an intimate feeling and turns it into this grand adventure, delicately balancing between the humorous and the tragic stops.

Kogonada is one of the most exciting rising talents. His last two films Columbus and After Yang rank among the best of their years, and the former is also aesthetically romantic in a way only film can be—albeit both far less commercial. That is where A Big Bold Beautiful Journey has some of its more notable issues; the cinematography for the most part is rather uninspired and overly clean compared to the more rich looks of his past films. With something this high concept from a major studio like Sony, it is a shame that some of that corporatization seeps into the look of the film, as it really holds it back from reaching the heights of his past works and prevents it from being quite as effective. While the chemistry and concept is enough to overcome how cheaply digital a lot of it looks, the cinematography remains a major detriment. Thankfully, some inspired music compositions and design choices allow the film to retain some of Kogonada’s visual personality. That being said, while some of the needle drops boost the swooning atmosphere of the film, there are a few too many that distract not only from the scenes but also the previously mentioned Hisaishi score. It is a shame that a typically lovely work from one of the greatest living composers is occasionally an afterthought.

It is hard to separate this viewing of the film from the notably negative reception going in, but the film is such a lovely, romantic treat that is sure to have moviegoers leaving with a warm smile and a happy heart. Kogonada’s latest is a wonderful ode to a type of storytelling you may not have encountered since your mom read fairy tales to you after tucking you into bed. It is a loving reminder that those kinds of stories are just as comforting and heartwarming as you remembered. 

8/10