Leave

Leave (2022) is a Norwegian movie that was released to the US (and added to Shudder) today and tells the tale of an orphaned young lady who tracks her real family back to Norway. She finds her family home, her mothers things including her journal and hears the story of how she became an orphan. As she gets to know her family better she uncovers why her mom was the way she was and why her life may be at risk.

This movie was directed by Alex Herron in his directorial debut and stars Alicia von Rittberg (Fury), Herman Tømmeraas (Ragnarok), Ellen Dorrit Petersen (Blind), Morten Holst (A Royal Affair) and Christine Donlon (Escape Room).

The storyline is fairly cliche, straightforward and unimaginative. There were elements that had potential, but the horror elements relied on human attacks and interactions and just felt like sick people in life more than "horror." The main character was also frustrating at times where when the family gets weird it's time to be out, but of course she wants to stay. I didn't feel the backstory of the mother was as intense or creepy as intended either.

Overall, this is a disappointing addition to the horror genre that's not really worth your time. I would score this a 3.5/10 and recommend skipping it.

Hunter seeks to understand her heritage after she was left orphaned in a cemetery. She flies to Norway thinking she knows who her mother is. What unfolds is a light version of "The Girl with a..." series, just less intense and less polished. Hunter ignores all the obvious signs of danger as she's hell bent on finding answers to her questions about being orphaned. The resolution has only minor supernatural elements, and we are left with only the horrors of humanity (including attempted rape). The acting is decent, production good, and the over quality of the film is fine. But, it lacks much in terms of genuine suspense or horrific elements. Worth a watch if a calm film with moments of something like intensity is to your liking.

I read the other reviews of this film and it feels like we did not see the same movie. Straight of the bat. This is a suspenseful thriller with horror elements (which people jumped in their seat from), but it is not a hard core horror. It has cool plot and a mystery to be solved. A baby left at a cemetery in the US 20 years ago has an adult managed to track down Norway as the place were she thinks she can find out who and why she was left. Things start getting dicey soon as she makes contact with the people she thinks has answers and from there on out it is one of the most suspenseful films I have seen this year. A elegantly told story with surprises accompanied beautiful cinematography, yes a bit dark at times, but it suites the tone. I also really liked parts of the score. Could be to demanding for younger viewers just looking for gore and killing. There was some truly great acting (I must mention the main character Hunter, the guy that plays her father and her grandfather) I have no idea who these people are that would say the acting is bad or that the English accents are bad. Have you not understood the movie? They have accents because they are Norwegians talking to an American. Also the acting was surprisingly good! I think this film is perfect for people that love a good mystery and can take a scare, but don't want a jump scare fest.

This movie will not add anything to your life. It had some potential - weird families in Norway are a great place to start with a tiny bit of black metal thrown in for good measure.

However, my main pet peeve is the shots are too dark. What is the point of shooting a film when your audience cannot see what you are doing/ The compositions aren't strong enough to be 'arty'.

The storyline is very weak, you can see the ending coming from a mile away. It is not all that interesting. I kept waiting for something to happen but was left disappointed. Again, it had some potential but squandered it by following the main character to nowhere.

There is no black metal in this movie, only black screens.

Firstly, this movie ain't as bad as the negative reviews here would have you believe. While it was somewhat predictable in spots and felt like a movie that could have been made in the 80's or 90's, the storyline was still interesting and the actress in the lead role I thought was pretty good. I would have probably enjoyed this more at the Cineplex but, as a streaming movie, it's worthy of at least checking out when you're in the mood for an old-school suspense/horror flick. So, keep an open mind next time you can't seem to find a scary flick in the vast world of streaming horror and at least check out the trailer.