Leave the World Behind (2023) Analysis and Review

Leave the World Behind: Analysis and Review

Sam Esmail’s Leave the World Behind (2023) is a slow-burn thriller featuring some of the best performances of the year courtesy of Mahershala Ali and Julia Roberts. The trailer does a great job of throwing viewers off the scent, offering no real insights into the world that our characters are facing. Even the title reminds me of the mantra so often asked: “What kind of world do you want to leave behind?” This is an impossible question and, of course, it also has so many meanings. I would come to realize that the characters had no real answers either, and that’s what makes this such a fascinating watch.

The Sandford’s are your traditional suburban family and Amanda (the wonderful Julia Roberts) just wants to leave the world behind for a weekend. She and her husband Clay (Ethan Hawke) bounce off each other naturally but also contrast each other. She is an advertising analyst. She sees the worst in people. She sees them as numbers. Clay teaches English. He sees the best of people. Passion. Individuality. Genuineness. Their children Archie and Rosie are also along for the ride, and the latter is intent on finishing the final season of Friends.

The score is subtle and haunting and even as they arrive at the beach, a seemingly fun vacation setting, there is never a sense that things are right. Their first day culminates in the sudden arrival of Ruth (a sassy Myha’la) and her father G.H. (Ali), the owners of the airBNB from which our family of four has rented. Leave the World Behind poses so many interesting “What would you do?” questions forcing the audience to see themselves as one of the characters’ faced with these real world implications. A strange couple shows up unannounced at your rental home and he doesn’t have identification on him? A blackout hits and you have to arrive at your own home where strangers are staying? The entire movie asks you to put yourselves’ in their shoes. Amanda is very hesitant to trust them at first, but quickly realizes the direness of their situation.

I went into this viewing blindly, having never read the book. I kept thinking we were going to get a supernatural twist. The editing and pacing is reminiscent of a Jordan Peele feature. The arrival of Ali feels like the horror movie is finally about to begin, and then it doesn’t (in the way of say, a traditional jump scare flick.) Their characters are refreshing. The reveal of a gun adds more tension. Are they trustworthy? The shot of the television blue light reflecting on their faces is terrifying and reinforces the horror tease. “Your client.” The slow burn reveal. The audience is being misdirected which is brilliant. We are being made to think that individual conflict and potential problems posed>big picture.

Once the Sandford’s decide it’s in their best interest to try and drive to New Jersey (a terrible idea) we now see the transition from horror/thriller to dystopian and/or psychological horror. Self-driving cars pile up like an episode of Black Mirror. Clay drives eighty miles per hour (symbolism that laws don’t apply anymore) and finds flyers in Arabic reading “Death to America. We have the most dangerous and destructive explosives in history.” GH finds dead bodies on the beach and a plane crashes in the ocean. It is only now when information is slowly revealed. He explains a three stage scenario he never dreamt could be possible. First, isolation. Deafness. Blindness. There is a gradual loss of control with the internet outages, National Emergency Alert,  and then TV static. Second, synchronized chaos. Misinformation. The flyers. The piercing noises. GH likely realizes his wife is dead. Finally, coup d’état. The ending is a little lacklustre but I don’t mind it. “No one told you life was gonna be this way” feels a whole lot different here! With stage three fully underway, we see New York City collapsing. I don’t know if we needed this shot. As we knew where Ruth was standing based on an earlier scene with Rosie it would have been just as powerful to focus on her reaction to the carnage. Keep us in the dark!

The cast must be applauded. Hawke, Roberts, Ali, and Myha’la are all wonderful. As well, the music and shot selection make this movie. There is great editing and pacing and the film being separated into five parts only adds to the story. The opening scenes of an innocent New York City is subtle foreshadowing. Especially with the “normal” sirens and plane taking off in the distance. Esmail implored great usage of foreshadowing throughout. “Archie could sleep through the atom bomb.” “This is why I preferred life before the internet.” As well, the shots of Earth and satellites, and particularly the USA flag on the moon are harrowing. As we near the conclusion of the film, the tempo of the music increases. I almost wish they leaned into the insanity of it all a bit more, especially when Archie’s teeth fall out. It felt almost glossed over, even in a two hour movie. Though, you could argue that this pace made the film feel more real, and not embrace the horror vibe I kept feeling it was going to peak somewhere.

Leave the World Behind reminded me of Eric Walters’ “Rule of Thre3” series and Danny (the Korean-blaming Kevin Bacon) is not dissimilar to Nick Offerman in The Last of Us. Each and every character is fleshed-out and behaves in a realistic manner, which you don’t often see. Amanda hates people and is pessimistic and untrusting. She doesn’t have too many bad traits, especially in relation to her interactions and love for family. However, an exaggerated way of thinking (her outlook) is exactly why the coup d’état is successful. This contrasts with Clay’s as an all-encompassing “version” of his outlook is what would need to exist for things to not descend into chaos. Archie is the polar opposite of his sister. Immature for his age, quite useless, and not a very good big brother. His response to Rosie pleading: “No one cares what I say” is “That’s probably true.” Later, you can’t help but feel sorry for him when Clay doesn’t even know his girlfriend’s name, reminiscent of his conversation with Rosie. Ruth’s tone at first makes her come across as a bit egotistical, but she is raw and emotional and much more intelligent than first thought. Her asking the question “Have you ever slept with a student?” isn’t silly, if anything she understands that they might be all that they have left so who cares? Amanda and Ruth’s embrace is very powerful, with Roberts (if only temporarily) filling the role of a mother. G.H. remains level-headed for the most part. Is he a bit delusional though? Is your job really about people as he claims? People should care about you. George (Ali) provides us with the most powerful line in the movie in “Media is an escape and reflection.” It is so relevant as when this determining factor crashes down, so does all other infrastructure and forces reflection. Clay realizes he is useless without his GPS. Rosie cares so deeply for Ross and Rachel that it has become her escape and she is almost lost without it. When all of this falls apart, the deer know more than the humans and take immediate action in large groups. How ironic.

Leave the World Behind reminds us what it takes to be human and, more importantly, what it means. Nobody hates people. They hate certain behaviour, sure. Lies. Suffering. This is a great movie about perspective and priority. The simplicity of it all is best exemplified when Ruth and Clay get high, and George and Amanda get drunk and have an emotional dance to Next’s “Too Close” amidst the chaos of it all. I believe this is one of the best takes on a “doomsday” type feature as it takes two families and never draws attention away from them. The film isn’t centralized in the chaos and it doesn’t need to be. The atmosphere being so contained allows the film to feel so raw and the characters’ truly isolated and alone. Take care of yourself.

Post-Watch Thoughts

• Could this result in a Quiet Place-esque reset of society minus the killer aliens?

• Why did Archie’s teeth fall out?

• Is this whole film even plausible? How are Canada and Europe responding?

Rating: 9.1/10