Leave the World Behind

Facing the apocalypse in a unique way is not an easy thing to do in movies, but director/screenwriter Sam Esmail takes Rumaan Alam's 2020 novel and turns it into an unrelenting 2023 psychological thriller that captures the current extremist political landscape and isolationist world view with sharp acuity. No one real is explicitly mentioned, but so much of the threat presented in the spiraling plot felt not only relevant but palpable. It starts with a last-minute family vacation in a Long Island mansion and the two strangers who enter their lives. Julia Roberts plays an unapologetically mistrustful woman with familiar conviction, while Ethan Hawke does what he can as her laid-back husband. As the mysterious stranger, Mahershala Ali has to play it close to the vest, while Kevin Bacon has an effective turn late in the story. I could've done without some of the contrived camera angles and predictable music cues, but overall the film got me thinking what I would do under similar circumstances.

I'm happy I didn't listen to the bad reviews here and skipped this movie. It's very well made.

And yes, it raises more questions than it answers, but this is how it would be during an apocalypse or cyber attack. You wouldn't know what's going on and wouldn't trust anyone fully, you could only rely on some bits and pieces of information.

It wasn't boring at all, very engaging actually. The fact that most questions that come to mind when watching it are not answered, leave you thinking about what you would do and even question things in life you take for granted.

This movie is only uncomfortable for those who don't wanna use their imagination and own thoughts and expect a movie to put every answer in their mouths.

I haven't seen such a thought provoking, elegant yet unsettling movie in a long time!

Oh and by the way... the big question everyone has, what's actually going on is answered at the end, just pay attention to the conversation in the car and the computer screen.. It's all there.. What happens after? Well, finally a movie that allows you to use your own thoughts.

People will cry about the ending, but the ending is the best part of the film. I won't go into details but the ending isn't the ending, it's the beginning. How people can't see that is beyond me.

The film is apocalyptic horror comedy essentially. Also a dive into what makes us human and how we judge others but in reality we're just living in our own delusion. It's very meta and most people won't get it. That's fine.

I really liked the tension, the acting, the score and the comedic break scenes (dancing, etc). The other way this film excels is how it uses exposition. They use character, dialogue and subtleties to slowly bring the plot. It's not for everyone but if you like cinema that's not made to be easily digested, you will like it. Well done! 7.3/10.

After just a few minutes, we (wife and I) were pulled into the suspense and drama of this movie. For over two hours we followed the tense, taut events with several 'whoa!!' moments.

And then it just ended. With all the effort in building up the complex, intriguing plot, I can see how a definitive ending would be difficult or impossible to create. It felt like rather than make any attempt, they just chose an abrupt, inexplicable stopping point versus an actual ending. Many plot elements were developed and left hanging.

The first two hours I'd rate this an 8 or a 9. The last 10 minutes a 2 at most.

Would have made a better series. Some great parts in this film and it has a great cast of actors that somehow keep you watching until the end. However it is very disjointed and just ends without any sort of explanation. Branches of in all sorts of different directions, mini stories shared but not finished. Left with a lot of questions it's like they ended it half an hour too soon. Kevin Bacon has a bit part they could have done more with his character. If you have a couple of hours to kill give it a watch however prepare for the dissatisfaction it leaves you with when the credits roll! 6/10 from me and that's mainly down to the actors.