This is the way the world ends, not with a bang, not with a whimper either and not with any sort of fanfare that the likes of Michael Bay or Roland Emmerich have dreamed up. Sam Esmail's Leave The World Behind is a terrific unconventional apocalyptic thriller that ducks convention for something a little more idiosyncratic, a film that's hard to pin down or get a real feel for and as such is one of the most invigorating of its kind in some time. Ethan Hawke and Julia Roberts are a high strung NYC couple who take their two kids (Charlie Evans & Farrah Mackenzie) on a mini vacation just outside the city in a posh Airbnb they've rented. When the internet and phones go down and a well dressed stranger (Mahershala Ali) and his daughter (Myha'la) show up claiming to be the place's owners, tensions slowly mount as mysterious cyber attacks instill isolation and other bizarre, mounting phenomena begin to encroach on the idyllic upper middle class sanctum these people have convinced themselves is unshakable. The film clocks in at almost two and a half hours so you can really dig in and immerse yourself alongside these characters in an end of the world narrative that never once feels altogether familiar or easy to surmise before the beats drop. Roberts is great, playing against type and in character actor mode as the boozy, often agitated mom, Hawke his typical fired up yet laconic self while Ali, in a role originally meant for Denzel Washington (I would have *loved* to have seen that) shows his usual knack for uneasy dialogue delivery and furrowed charisma. Evans fares less well as the son and is the only performer who isn't electric, with clunky line delivery and lack of real persona. Myha'la is excellent and a real rising star, Kevin Bacon shows up in a brittle extended cameo but finally its young Mackenzie, daughter of tough guy character actor Andy, who gives the best, most important and human acting work the film has to offer. Director Esmail peppers the wonderfully clever script with a multitude of film and television references and her performance is the conduit for many of them, she nails the very human desire for escapism and storytelling in the face of disaster that is tough to cope with, particularly for a young mind. It's a wonderful thriller that dodges the familiar tropes, takes place almost solely in broad daylight yet still conjures up chilling terror in the absurdity of a society coming apart at the seams after some vague yet ever present global event. Great film.
Review of Leave the World Behind
