'Leave The World Behind' is living proof that no matter what actors, what filmmakers or however much money you throw at a project, if the storyline isn't up to scratch, the movie is destined to leave you underwhelmed and disappointed. And this is certainly the case with this film.
This new production from Sam Esmail, primarily known for his work in television, is enjoyable for about 80% of it's run time, but unfortunately the 20% of it's duration that I did find disappointing was in it's final moments.
One of the most intriguing and encapsulating storytelling techniques that a filmmaker can do is force the audience to ask questions. Who is the antagonist? Why did that just happen? What the hell is even going on here?
All valid questions throughout an experience watching this movie. But unfortunately, in this case, there was no valid answers.
For so long, this film will intrigue you and allow you to ask questions and refrain from turning away incase you miss an important answer or change of events. But eventually, as the runtime wears down and you check your watch to find that there isn't all too long left, you will find yourself disappointed with the invisible outcome to these questions.
The whole concept of this film's ending seems to be a bit of a laugh in the face from the minds behind this production, essentially saying 'I can't believe you at through this whole thing and expected a good ending'.
And unfortunately, the right to laugh is justified.
There are various angles and perspectives that you can look at this movie from. It could be argued that the whole story is a comment on modern day society and that although there could be further-enhanced enemies out there, at the end of the day it's really just humans vs humans.
But a clear statement is never really made by this movie and it inevitably ends up leaving you unsatisfied with how you just spent the last 140 minutes of your life.
A small handful of reviving factors do take shape through the form of solid performances from both Mahershala Ali and Ethan Hawke. Both struggling Fathers, desperate to protect their family through such a clearly awful and confusing moment in their lives.
Hawke actually delivers a very real and emotional monologue in the dying embers of this film that does allow you to look at his character from a different perspective. Throughout the movie, the character of 'Clay' comes across as an easy-going bystander that happens to find himself in a sticky situation, but that all changes when he has some tough decisions to make later on in the story.
But as we all know, good acting can only support poor screenwriting for so long, and if you didn't already know this, you'll soon find out by watching this film.
There are countless occasions where not only character dialogue, but the actions of these characters are extremely unprecedented and out of the blue, making the film even more unrealistic and cringy than it already is. The character of 'Amanda', played by Julia Roberts, perfectly encapsulates the level of cringiness that takes the idea of unlikeability to a whole new level.
Although there is no meat the the bones of this film that cause us to keep on watching, for the most part, it can be found entertaining as there are a lot of intirguing events that occur throughout. But if you think for a moment that there'll be any legitimate explanation to these events, think again.
Overall Rating: 5/10
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