#farrah mackenzie

[hotticuslincoln]

"Leave the World Behind"

[thegraininessofitall]

Lawless Range (2018)

[kwebtv]

Utopia  -  Amazon Prime Video  -  September 25, 2020

Science Fiction / Drama (8 episodes)

Running Time:  44 - 55 minutes

Stars:

John Cusack as Kevin Christie

Ashleigh LaThrop as Becky Todd

Dan Byrd as Ian Ackerman

Desmin Borges as Wilson Wilson

Jessica Rothe as Samantha

Christopher Denham as Arby / John Hyde

Javon Walton as Grant Bishop

Farrah Mackenzie as Alice

Cory Michael Smith as Thomas Christie

Jeanine Serralles as Colleen Stearns

Rainn Wilson as Michael Stearns

Sasha Lane as Jessica Hyde

Recurring

Felisha Terrell as Hailey Alvez

Fiona Dourif as Cara Frostfield

Dustin Ingram as Tallman

Michael B. Woods as Rod

Crystal Fox as Kim

Rebecca Spence as Laura Christie

Sonja Sohn as Katherine Milner

Tim Hopper as Dale Warwick

Hadley Robinson as Charlotte and Lily

Calum Worthy as Ethan

[scenesandscreens]

Director - Sam Esmail, Cinematography - Tod Campbell

"No one is in control. No one is pulling the strings."

Leave the World Behind (2023)

[soraskyecinema]

Leave the World Behind // Sam Esmail // 2023

[sunrise-on-the-reaping]

So no one told you life was gonna be this way

LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND (2023) | dir. Sam Esmail

[filministic]

Leave the World Behind (2023) dir. Sam Esmail

[adamwatchesmovies]

Leave the World Behind (2023)

Leave the World Behind grabs you with its initial scenario, builds up the tension to a critical point, and then leaves you with a… mostly satisfying ending. I say mostly because the film is so well acted and raises so many complex emotions that your expectations rise to an impossibly high level. That sounds like a much harder criticism than intended. It just means the film is the kind you thoroughly enjoy during your initial watch but are unlikely to revisit.

During an impromptu weekend getaway at a luxurious home near the beach, Amanda (Julia Roberts), her husband Clay (Ethan Hawke), their teenage son Archie (Charlie Evans) and younger daughter Rose (Farrah Mackenzie) narrowly avoid an oil tanker than runs ashore. Soon after, they notice the TV no longer works and the internet is unavailable. When the home’s owner - George (Mahershala Ali) and his college-age daughter, Ruth (Myha’la) arrive unexpectedly - an already uneasy situation becomes even tenser.

One of the film’s biggest strengths is the way it keeps its cards close to its chest. Aside from a couple of brief messages on Amanda’s phone, we have no idea what’s happening. Some of the strange events seem unrelated and if they are connected, you have no idea what could be causing them. Hackers could be responsible for disrupting the television, Wi-Fi and cellphone networks, but why would that affect the nearby wildlife? Things only get spookier as more conflicting information about what’s happening trickles in. Even when theories about what’s causing this proposed, you’re unsure if you can trust the source, which offers you no comfort, whatsoever.

You’ll sweat plenty from the prospect of the world shutting down for mysterious, likely nefarious reasons and if you aren’t, the character interactions will. There’s something wrong with Amanda. It’s understandable that she’s nervous about the situation, but the moment George and his daughter arrive, something about them sets off a series of irrational alarms inside her head. You wonder if she would react the same if they were white, and George’s daughter wonders the same thing. With a greater disaster surely on its way, these people need to cooperate and stay cool. For the most part, they do. Clay is doing his best to defuse the situation, so is George but you know one false move and the polite harmony will crumble.

The characters help an already engaging scenario become the kind you can’t look away from. There’s a part of you that strongly dislikes, maybe even hates Amanda. She’s coming so close to ruining everything so consistently… but she never becomes a caricature. She’s too real. It’s easy for you to recognize a part of yourself in her. Julia Robert’s excellent performance helps. You could say the same about the entire cast. There are so many great character moments. Kevin Bacon has a small but critical role, Ethan Hawke is perfectly cast, same for Mahershala Ali and Myha’la. All the characters have flaws. So much that I’m not sure you could say you “like” any of them but you also understand how upsetting these events would be, so you can't help empathize.

There’s one plot thread I’m unsure what to make of. At the film's beginning, Rose is about to finish the TV series Friends. She’s on the last episode when the Wi-Fi gives out. At one point in the story, she wanders away from everyone, determined to find a way to finish her show. It’s not surprising, considering her mother has repeatedly chosen to shelter her children from the severity of the situation. Her obsession with a trivial matter - the lives of a bunch of fictional characters whose story ended in 2004 - sets off a chain reaction that has nearly everyone running and panicking. On the other hand, we see people who - rather than try and live their lives as normally as possible until things blow over - take these events as an opportunity to do what they wouldn't have been able to under normal circumstances, and that leads to a disaster of unimaginable magnitude. It makes you wonder what screenplay writer and director Sam Esmail thinks of Rose.

Leave the World Behind makes its 2hr+ running time fly by like nothing, creates one nail-biting situation after another and its conclusion will have you thinking for a while. There's a lot you could say about it, even if it isn't exactly pleasant or the kind of movie I think you'll feel the need to ever revisit. Considering you'd be watching it "for free"/as part of a subscription, it's an easy recommendation. (January 4, 2024)