Upamanyu Biswas
Netflix’s ‘Lonely Planet’ follows Katherine Loewe, an experienced novelist who takes a trip to Morocco to complete her new novel. While staying at an idyllic retreat, she struggles to navigate the personal issues in her life following a divorce from her longtime husband. However, her vacation takes a twist when she finds herself connecting with a young man named Owen, who is reevaluating various aspects of his life and seeking connections himself. The two find solace in each other’s company as they undergo new experiences traveling through exotic regions.
Directed by Susannah Grant, the romance film captures the scenic beauty of a foreign country and the seeds of a love story blossoming amidst the picturesque locale. At its heart, ‘Lonely Planet’ is about human connection in all forms, whether it be romantic or platonic. The protagonist learns the value of moving beyond her literary escapades and building more harmonious bonds with the world around her and the people who keep her company. The movie’s quaint and summer fling-style romance adds a realistic touch to the narrative making it an engaging watch.
Lonely Planet Explores the Magic of Travel Through a Love Story
Written, directed, and co-produced by Susannah Grant, ‘Lonely Planet’ is fueled by a fictional narrative that revolves around the exploits of veteran writer Katherine Loewe and a young finance broker named Owen Brophy, who meet one another while attending an international writers’ retreat in Morocco. Subsequently, the narrative dives into the peculiarities of an exotic country and how it helps the central characters redefine themselves and discover who they are as people. While romance does take precedence, the movie’s central focus lies on exploring new boundaries and how letting go of familiar things is pivotal in a person’s overall development.
A somber approach is taken in broaching topics of dysfunctional personal relationships, mending broken hearts, and learning to disconnect from one’s daily life once in a while. To that end, the scenic backdrop of the Moroccan countryside helps elevate those themes of self-discovery. Grant described it as “the transformational power of travel” and how journeying to a different setting can help reframe personal objectives and recalibrate people’s identity. Those same themes of personal exploration also drew Laura Dern, who plays Katherine, to the project. The actor emphasized how the film affirms an individual’s self-worth and finding new reasons to be passionate about things.
Undoubtedly, another key element within ‘Lonely Planet’ is its unique love story between an older woman and a younger man. It creates a special dynamic between the pair as they share their experiences and wisdom from different stages of life. However, for Dern, their bond is more than just attraction; it is also built on understanding. She said in a Netflix interview, “The dynamic between the younger man and the older, established writer intrigued me because it’s not just about romance — it’s about finding someone who truly sees and understands you, which is something deeply human and relatable.” Thus, the movie’s adherence to thematic truths helps ground it in a sense of reality that only immerses viewers in their relationship.
Katherine Loewe is a Fictional Novelist With No Connection to Reality
Katherine Loewe is a fictional character conceived by Susannah Grant during the drafting of the script. She is the primary protagonist of the story and is depicted as someone who is married to her work, almost to the point of it being detrimental to other aspects of her life. Although she attends the retreat like all the other writers, Katherine keeps herself detached and only focuses on finishing her writing. Despite suffering from writer’s block, she perseveres with her efforts, citing it as a consequence of her deep love and appreciation for literature. She has previously won several accolades for her novels, signifying the strength of her voice in the field. There is also an unspoken acceptance that she has been writing for decades, having published her first novel while she was still in college.
In the movie, Katherine has new challenges set out for her. In the same interview with Netflix, Laura Dern explained, “Katherine has spent her life dedicated to narrative and therefore (hasn’t spent) much time looking at deep truth within. She is at a turning point in her life where she is looking for a softening and deeper understanding, and she finds it in a love story.” As Katherine has devoted most of her life to an intellectual style existence, her parameters of defining herself have been confined to her works and what she thinks of them. After meeting Owen, she learns to slowly accept that there is more to her identity than her success through writing. While her deeper insecurities are drawn from real struggles faced by creatives around the world, she is ultimately a fictional novelist with no ties to reality.
Read More: Where Was Netflix’s Lonely Planet Filmed?
