Title – Leave the World Behind (2023)
Director – Sam Esmail (Comet)
Cast – Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, Mahershala Ali, Myha’la, Kevin Bacon
Plot – On an impromptu family getaway with their two children, Amanda (Roberts) and Clay Sandford (Hawke) have their break interrupted by a series of concerning events that leads to the owner of the holiday home they are staying in G.H Scott (Ali) arriving at the property, where the strangers must now navigate the happenings going on around them while also dealing with their own internal tensions.
“I think I’m done waiting”
Review by Eddie on 13/12/2023
It’s the end of the world “not” as we know it in Sam Esmail’s high-profile Netflix original that offers up a unique and confronting examination of a world thrown upside down.
A star-studded affair founded around Ethan Hawke, Julia Roberts and Mahershala Ali’s everyday upper-class American citizens who are confronted with an entirely different way of life when a mysterious occurrence occurs knocking out all forms of communication and setting people on edge with a seemingly increasingly volatile set of incidents that suggests their world has been changed not only right here and now but forever, Leave the World Behind is a unique take on a well-worn cinematic tradition.
Adapting Rumaan Alam’s book of the same name with help from Barrack and Michelle Obama who are on board as some of the films producers/backers, Esmail brings a palpable sense of ominous dread and intrigue to his big-budgeted feature (that he has spoken about being in the same universe as his famed Mr. Robot TV series, fans of which should keep an eye out for some subtle Easter Eggs) that might not be for everyone but will work wonders for others.
Some viewers that are wanting a more explosive or action packed end of days feature will be left wanting from this more intimate and character driven experience but there’s some masterful filmmaking on display here that will leave hooked viewers on edge throughout and contemplating many aspects of this cautionary and insightful tale well after the credits have rolled and a scarily accurate final portion takes place.
Set mostly in the confines of a house owned by Ali’s G.H Scott and rented out by Hawke and Roberts couple Amanda and Clay Sandford alongside their two children, Behind is capable of gripping whether it be within the confines of this impressive house or memorable scenes that include giant oil tankers, wayward air-planes or some rogue Tesla’s and with such talented performers as he has at his disposal front and centre throughout, Esmail is able to deliver a noteworthy overall package that is significantly stronger than average Netflix features.
Calling to mind recollections of the dark days of the Covid-19 pandemic and other instances where the fragility of mankind’s way of life has been shown up, some may scoff at Behind’s approach to the modern day version of the end of days but there’s a scary and relatable reality to what the Scott’s and Sandford’s are dealing with here and Esmail’s film is as scary and frightening as anything else unleashed in the cinematic landscape in 2023.
Expertly crafted, consistently surprising and entirely plausible, Esmail and his creative team have crafted one of the years most divisive products that shines a light on topics many would rather ignore until its on their front doorstep.
Final Say –
Far removed from your typical end of the world thriller Hollywood has made audiences accustomed to, Leave the World Behind is an eye-opening account of what may be coming humankind’s way and our sad reliance on media and technology that has doomed us to a seemingly unavoidable outcome.
4 1/2 Friends box sets out of 5
Jordan and Eddie (The Movie Guys) 
Loved it. I’ve heard of the ‘west/east coast’ American thing for some time now, and as everyone’s reliance on tech across the Globe increases, a complete shutdown isn’t too far beyond the realms…
Also, in the convo with Ali and him meeting the ‘secret’ leader/guy, we all know who he meant, right?
I am actually surprised more haven’t connected to this film.
To me it’s the most realistic depiction of how everything might crumble I have seen in some time. It shows how easy it is to throw everything into a sense of chaos and disarray.
E
I think films like this unsettle people, and I wonder if we’re in a brief era of ‘escape’ only films. Sometimes unfortunately, but the masses don’t always like reality – hoping some might pick up over the month more now it’s streaming, especially with a good cast!
I did find this genuinely unsettling, I think you’re right in a sense of nowadays not many people want to confront the confronting things that are happening or will be happening at some stage in the future.
E
I was enjoying this movie until it came to the scene where they “matter of factually” indicated that white people can’t be trusted. Being a white person myself, I found that statement highly offensive. Other than that, good movie!
Some of that type of commentary is a little hard to bare at times, not really needed in this film either to be fair overall.
E
Random creative writing professors at CUNY who happen to be white can’t be trusted but fabulously wealthy black men who get rich off defense contractor blood money can’t be doubted? Not surprising Obama produced this movie.
Racial issues in such films, intentional or not, can certainly be more discussible in this generation. Even now when I look back on THX 1138 where all the black people, such as SRT (Don Pedro Colley) were somehow made into holograms, I could give Lucas the benefit of the doubt and assume that no blatant disrespect was intended. But in some films where the only black character like Quentin in Cube somehow becomes a villain for whatever reasons, we should be wise enough to grasp the villain in individualistic terms regardless of their race, gender or sexual orientation. An apocalyptic film may compel us all to really take a clearer look at why we may have such issues in the first place. That’s why Leave The World Behind works for me. It encourages us to think a lot more as any truly great film should. Thank you, Eddie, for your review.
Solid acting, good use of suspense and keeping the audience in the dark. Not sure if this movie has good replay value but I really enjoyed it.
Yep I think the joy in this one for me was from the not knowing what was coming and the often unexpected results/outcomes of what was being explored. Certainly one I have been telling lots of people to check out!
E
Too many plot holes.
The power was out in Manhattan but it stayed on on the North Shore of Long Island? I ship that probably draws 30 feet of water sailed right up to the beach? They needed “medicine” from the prepper for a kid who really needed a set of dentures?
And the politics were insufferable. We’re actually told that the people who run the American military industrial complex aren’t really in control? That it’s “racist” to doubt the word of a black man who got rich off of blood money managing the assets of defense contractors?
The Quiet Earth was the first apocalyptic film to educate me on how the dramatizing of politics should be most profound. For all that we modern humans have become dependant on, as inevitably realized when it all suddenly starts to unravel, loosing one’s teeth may have been intentionally symbolic. Although seeing the son having to pull his teeth out to realize that they were coming out felt a bit extreme.
Civilization unraveled but Scott still honored his non-disclosure agreements with his clients in the weapons industry.
It reminds me of what Mark Fisher said. It’s easier to imagine the end of the world than it is to imagine the end of capitalism.
I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, in a way that I looked away from a lot of reasonable negative comments it received. And how great is that first scene??