When Laura Dern’s Katherine Lowe arrives at an all-expenses paid writers’ retreat in Morocco in the Netflix travel love story “Lonely Planet,” she is blown away by the accommodations, and so are we.
“Oh … wow, oh God,” says Katherine as she enters her sprawling room in the gorgeously decorated casbah, which offers breathtaking views from its hilltop perch. For the next several days, a small group of writers from around the world will enjoy lazy afternoons in the pool, lavish meals, primo Moroccan hashish, cocktail-fueled dancing and flirting, and witty repartee. It’s like the private island resort in “Blink Twice,” only without the murder-y part. Anyone who has ever written anything will be thinking: WHERE DO I SIGN UP FOR THIS??
From the opening scene right until the wholly expected finale, “Lonely Planet” is pure romantic-drama escapism. It’s so thin that if the original material had been in book form, that book would have been a pamphlet. Writer-director Susannah Grant (creator of the Netflix series “Unbelievable” and screenwriter of “Erin Brockovich”) has fashioned an old-fashioned albeit slightly unconventional romance featuring terrific actors who do very little heavy lifting as they go through the paces against the exotic and historic backdrop of Marrakech.
Dern’s Katherine is a celebrated and critically acclaimed author who is going through a breakup with her partner of 14 years and has come to the retreat in the hopes of finding an isolated space as she fights writer’s block. Problem is, the other authors (who are given quick introductions and then fade into the background for the rest of the story) are here to make some noise and let loose, as only writers can. (At one point, they play a spirited parlor guessing game based on clues from literature, e.g., someone says, “the Flaubert heroine,” and the group exclaims, “Madame Bovary, Madame Bovary!”)
Diana Silvers is Lily, whose first book was a surprise smash hit. For reasons of plot and an excuse for Liam Hemsworth to go shirtless, Hemsworth’s Owen Brophy (he’s a bro AND a trophy!), Lily’s businessman boyfriend, has accompanied Lily on the trip, even though he has no interest in the arts and seems utterly mismatched with Lily.
Through a series of plot contrivances, Owen and Katherine wind up spending a lot of time together, including a road trip complete with clichés including the car that breaks down and the interlude with the colorful and warm local family. They’re each going through a lot, with Katherine trying to find herself amidst the breakup, and Owen facing a crisis of conscience over a business deal. As Lily becomes ever more dismissive and condescending to Owen, the kinship Owen has found with Katherine turns into something more, which leads to this line from Katherine: “Be careful there. I could fall for a kid like you.” (Maybe it’s the Moroccan setting that has Katherine talking like Rick from “Casablanca.”)
Dern and Hemsworth have an easy chemistry together, and Katherine and Owen establish such a quick connection that we believe there’s a real spark between them, despite Katherine having quite a bit more life experience than Owen and oh yeah, Owen is here as his girlfriend’s Plus One. “Lonely Planet” isn’t concerned with delving into anything beneath the surface. It’s a serviceable travelogue romance starring two likable actors.