HOLLYWOOD—I cannot recall the last time I witnessed a movie that seemed to pinpoint what I was thinking in my head, and it actually happening as if it could actually occur. It felt like the Netflix movie “Leave the World Behind” took my greatest fears and put them into a movie that makes you question, I know it might not ever happen, but what if it actually did happen. So many people have been telling me I have to watch this movie, so I finally watched it, and I was engulfed in the narrative, but the ending totally left me wanting more.
Sorry, I had to get that out there because that is what everyone is going to be talking about because depending on the person you may or may not be satisfied with how things conclude. With that said, I would not call this an end of the world type of flick, but it has those subtle tones to it. Strange things are happening, people are missing, explosions, weird sounds, everything you expect in a movie about the world coming to an end unfolds, but not quite and that is the lore of “Leave the World Behind.” This film has a cast of characters led by Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, Kevin Bacon and Mahershala Ali. Roberts and Hawke portray Amanda and Clay Sanford, husband and wife who are off to suburbia just outside of New York. It is hinted that tension exists between the married couple, but exactly what that tension is, the audience never gets to know.
We also have Clay and Amanda’s children, Rose (Farrah Mackenzie) and Archie (Charlie Evans), Rose being the more interesting of the two, especially when it comes to her obsession with the comedy series “Friends.” All seems to be going well at the Airbnb that the couple has rented until the sign of the first problem erupts, Wi-Fi interference. No one can connect their devices to the home’s internet, and that means no cell service either.
Roberts is well-suited in the role of a woman who is frustrated with life; a Julia Roberts that is not giddy and all about comedy is a fun actress to watch. It explores her range in a way that is so gripping to watch. Things really elevate when the owner of the home, G.H. or as he should have been called George (Ali) arrives to the home with his college daughter, Ruth (Myha’la) asking to stay at the home after a blackout in Manhattan.
Amanda is immediately skeptical and rightfully so, Clay on the flipside is super accommodating, despite this man not being able to produce some ID proving he is who he says he is. Amanda and Ruth don’t like one another and the ladies immediately trade barbs, as it seems to simmer that race might be an issue, but neither are willing to just come out and say it. It is a very interesting dynamic that plays out throughout the entire narrative.
The audience gets to see these characters bond as planes crash, people start acting weird, a kid gets sick, a kid disappears, deer and flamingos show up unexpectedly and the connection to the outside world ceases to exist. The character, Danny, portrayed by actor Kevin Bacon is slightly underutilized because he is not as fleshed out as the others, but he is the first hint of bad things headed in our protagonist’s direction.
The movie forces you to think about what you would do if you did not have access to the things that you have become so accustomed to like the internet, your cellphone, banking, vehicles, planes, the TV, the radio, the news. Yes, “Leave the World Behind” makes one question how humans would respond to a potential cyberattack or the idea that the world is under attack taking away the things we have become so reliant on.
The movie builds tension by escalating the mayhem that we think we know is going to erupt, but we’re not quite sure how it will erupt. Phenomenal tension is built with piercing sounds or the threat of imminent danger that the audience doesn’t really discover the true secret behind. “Leave the World Behind” made me think could we prepare for the end of the world, how would we start, how would we know, would I even want to know, and would we even survive? One thing I will say I was entertained, but if that ending would have been a bit more solid it would have turned a good movie into an exceptional one.
