Once upon a time, streaming rom-coms were a place where young stars like Joey King and Zoey Deutch went to prove their leading lady potential. These days, however, they seem to be a place where Oscar-winning actresses go to woo younger men. Earlier this year, Nicole Kidman romanced Zac Efron in A Family Affair, while Anne Hathaway seduced a faux Harry Styles in The Idea Of You. Now Laura Dern is here to enchant Liam Hemsworth in Netflix’s Lonely Planet, a travelogue romance set at a writer’s retreat in Morocco.
Lonely Planet comes with an impressive pedigree thanks to writer-director Susannah Grant, who previously wrote or co-wrote beloved female-centric movies like Ever After, Erin Brockovich, and In Her Shoes, as well as the Netflix miniseries Unbelievable. Curiously, however, it’s her direction that stands out far more than her writing in Lonely Planet. The film was shot on location in Morocco and it shows: Cinematographer Ben Smithard fills the film with wide shots of blue-tiled street markets, handheld footage of a bustling family tea service, expansive desert vistas at golden hour, and moody lighting in the kasbah where the writers retreat is being held. This alone is enough to make it stand out in a sea of Netflix offerings that more often than not look like they were filmed inside IKEA showrooms.
It’s also a solidly, if not extraordinarily, acted movie. Despite the near-disastrous choice to make Hemsworth use an American accent rather than his natural Australian one (did 10 Things I Hate About You teach us nothing?!?), he and Dern have a warm, believable chemistry together. While this may be a May-December romance (Dern is 23 years older than her co-star), Hemsworth’s grounded masculine confidence makes him feel like an equal in their dynamic. Dern, meanwhile, delivers the sort of whimsically self-possessed charm offensive that’s made her such a beloved screen presence for the past four decades.
The strength of the performances is key, because Lonely Planet’s screenplay leaves a little to be desired. Despite the clear aspiration to make this a wistfully grown-up romance, the characters are thinly drawn and a little too fond of speaking in rom-com clichés. Dern’s Katherine Loewe is a renowned but reclusive writer suffering from heartache and writer’s block. Hemsworth’s Owen Brophy is an uncultured finance bro who’s been dragged to the retreat by his excitable girlfriend Lily (Diana Silvers), a young novelist caught up in the whirlwind success of her debut book. The social dynamics of the retreat soon drive a wedge between Owen and Lily, even as it brings Katherine and Owen closer together. But can his ex-high school quarterback sincerity match with her belief that she’s only bearable to be around when she’s not writing?
Script-wise, Lonely Planet never really makes the case for why Katherine and Owen would be drawn to one another on anything more than a physical level. But that doesn’t really matter when the performances, direction, and melodic score are working overtime to sell the connection. The romance exists almost entirely in the longing glances the two share over countryside road trips and Moroccan café tables, the attraction rooted in their non-judgmental curiosity and mutual comfort with silence. Lonely Planet isn’t steamy like The Idea Of You or zany like A Family Affair, but it has a vibes-over-plot appeal that carries over to its central romance.
While a meatier version of this script might’ve been an ensemble dramedy about all the kooky writers at the retreat and how their stories parallel one another—a sort of Best Exotic Marigold Hotel for Morocco—Lonely Planet has zero interest in any characters that aren’t its two leads. The fellow writers all but disappear as soon as they’re introduced. Even poor Lily barely exists as a footnote in Owen’s story, he’s so immediately disinterested in her as soon as he spots Katherine. “Inevitable” is too charitable a word for how this love story unfolds. Even calling it a story at all feels generous.
In fact, so little happens in Lonely Planet that it’s more of a dreamy, 96-minute Moroccan tourism ad than anything else. But there are worse things than watching two beautiful people share an intrinsic connection over gorgeous shots of a centuries-old civilization. The fact that the movie has zero stakes and unfolds in one low emotional key is part of its appeal—the sort of subgenre known as “cozy romance” in publishing parlance. For those sick of love stories with over-the-top grand gestures, Lonely Planet offers something different. While it isn’t the sort of life-changing vacation you’ll think about again after the credits roll, it’s an amiable enough day trip to the land of mellow romance.
Is Lonely Planet Worth Watching?
If you’re looking for a thought-provoking film that challenges the tropes of the genre, Lonely Planet may not be for you. However, if you’re looking for a breezy, visually stunning escape with a touch of romance, this film may just be your ticket to Morocco, or at least to a very nice Netflix night.
