Special-K88 Review of Leave the World Behind

Leave the World Behind (2023)

there's good stuff here, it just doesn't know how to wrap it up

[16 January 2024]

Cynical, deeply misanthropic Brooklyn marketer Roberts is married to nonplussed college professor Hawke and they decide to take their two kids on an impromptu weekend getaway to a vacation rental home on Long Island. All seems normal at first, till the arrival of total stranger Ali and his unapologetic daughter, the self-professed owners of the home who seek solace during a citywide blackout. Though incredulous they still agree to the arrangement, but what happens next is totally unexpected. Slow but never without some bit of intrigue, this mind-eff thriller teases various themes like fear, paranoia, conspiracy theories, and dependence on technology, all in a way that never seems too familiar. A first-rate cast of actors, plus Esmail's innovative direction and camera tricks fill this with tension, but more importantly it doesn't spell it all out for the audience and instead requires them to think...it's just too bad that it doesn't know how to conclude things on a high note, going out with a whimper instead of a bang. **½