Movie · 2024 · Romance, Drama · 1h 36m · R · English
Curator score: 0.3/10 (39.6K ratings)
Sometimes you have to get lost to be found.
Overview
At an idyllic writers retreat in Morocco, a newly single novelist finds an unexpected connection with a younger man who's reevaluating his life choices.
Ratings
Curator score: 0.3/10
IMDb: 5.7/10
Letterboxd: 2.09/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 39%
TMDB: 6.1/10
Director
Susannah Grant
Production
3dot Productions
Cast
Laura Dern, Liam Hemsworth, Diana Silvers, Bellina Logan, Sami Fekkak, Gustav Dyekjær Giese, Rachida Brakni, Younès Boucif, Francesco Martino, Ben Youcef, Quintin Mims, Adriano Giannini, Shosha Goren, Heeba Shah, Jean-Erns Marie-Louise, Michelle Greenidge, Guo Tao, Muhammad Abdullah Arabi, Yahya Et Tonia, Naoufal Sabri
Where to watch
Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A glossy, low-chemistry romance built around a familiar age-gap fantasy and expat-writer-retreat setup, but the execution is widely judged as flat, underwritten, and emotionally inert. The appeal is mostly surface-level: Morocco scenery, a few attractive production details, and Laura Dern’s presence.
Best for
Viewers who want a lightweight streaming romance with travel scenery
Fans of writer-retreat settings and midlife romantic detours
People who are curious about a high-profile cast in a soft-focus, low-stakes drama
Skip if
You need strong chemistry or genuinely swoony romance
You’re tired of privileged-travel-and-self-discovery stories
You prefer sharp writing, emotional complexity, or memorable supporting characters
Overview
Lonely Planet has the ingredients of an adult romance: a sun-drenched Moroccan setting, a newly single novelist, and a younger man who seems like he might awaken something in her. In practice, it plays more like a mood board than a movie, with the relationship never quite finding heat, wit, or emotional specificity.
Worth noting
The film’s biggest problem is that it mistakes atmosphere for drama. The retreat setting promises introspection and artistic friction, but the script keeps everything at a polite distance, leaving the leads stranded in a story that feels thin and mechanical. Even the central dynamic, which should be provocative or messy, lands as oddly bloodless.
Bottom line
There are occasional pleasures in the location work and in seeing a seasoned performer carry material that gives her very little to do. But for most viewers, the experience will be less “forbidden romance” than a generic prestige-streaming diversion that never justifies its premise.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Ren (2★) · 769 likes
Laura Dern following in Nicole Kidman and Anne Hathaway’s footsteps
justinwuah (1★) · 557 likes
what's up with all these cougar films in 2024??? omg enough
theshivroy (0.5★) · 454 likes
Netflix Movie (derogatory).
jackmandu55 (2.5★) · 403 likes
nooooooo my hot girlfriend smokes weed, writes fiction and wants to have sex with me noooooo laura dern save meeee