Welcome to Bogger Box office. I am, Once Again Eamonn Bermingham, The Journeyman Reviewer. Reader's Poll Results time again and I'm looking forward to this one!
I'm not going to mince words, I'm struggling to have new ideas when it comes to storylines. (I think I'll just keep them as a device to group ticket to hell together.) So in the months I'm not reviewing wrestling over at Enlightened Towers, I'll be going in blind with a review of a Netflix Original.
However A big-cast slow burn Psychological Horror done by 3 indie Studios?
Sign me up!
So lets pack our bags, turn off your Phone (Forever!) And Hope you Reach your Destination, as you Leave The World Behind.
THE FOLLOWING FILM IS RATED 15 FOR VIOLENCE, DEATH, INJURY DETAIL, THREAT, DISCRIMINATION AND LANGUAGE, WHICH WILL BE CENSORED. DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
Promotional Art is a Scene from the movie.
The Movie opens with the sun shining upon the world, As tense Piano keys jangle. The Sun rises on New York. A day that Seemingly will Start like any other.
Except this is the day, Amanda Sandford (Julia Roberts) has Impulse bought a last minute Holiday for her Overworked and Stressed out husband Clay ( Ethan Hawke), who fears for his job amid company wide Budget cuts. Clay likes the idea of a Vacation out in New York State, but to have it, right now? But that's when his Advertising Executive wife tells her Speculative Fiction writing husband that when she booked it earlier this morning, she looked out the window to see everyone in the city already going to work to make something of themselves, but then the wife does a 180 and says people who do that think they are better than her and that she "F**KING HATES PEOPLE!"
We get Opening Sequence that's Animated to look like A Screensaver of Spoiler items as Drake sings out-WAIT A MINUTE? BARACK AND MICHELLE OBAMA ARE LISTED AS EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS?
We Suddenly come back to Amanda Title dropping on a Speakerphone call in transit to the Hamlet their Rented Home is (Yes Rented home, not Resort they own. That was a mistake Made by a TV listings magazine That suggested this movie) The Sandford Family which also include a 15 year old son named Archie and a 13 year old Daughter named Rose. All four are too dependent on their devices to enjoy the nature around them. Rose's device acts up as she was watching Friends and she asks if she can go to Central Perk when they get back to NYC. Clay breaks the news to her that Friends is not real, it's a TV show!
This is actually a Mislead to make us believe that this is going to be a "World is a Simulation'" plot. Something that's dropped a few times, especially when Clay explains his work. Which will make the ending a lot more sadder, when I get there.
PART I THE HOUSE
The Sandfords park their car and enter their Rental Home, A Well Kept, if Minimalistic two Storey Chateau, the Kids waste no time in raiding the Swimming pool as Amanda reads up on the Contract and Explores the house.
Getting Groceries in the Neighbouring Hamlet of Fort Comfort, Amanda gets dirty looks from a man played by Kevin Bacon, who's filling his truck with Canned food and bottles of water.
Don't mind him, Jools, he's just mad his voice over job in the UK means John Hamm took his place as The new 6 Degrees Actor-Man!
Clay is a Secret smoker which he denies when Amanda presents a pack of 20. But Amanda says he's on holiday, he can enjoy a smoke, just not in front of the kids.
The Sandfords next stop is an overcrowded polluted beach, where Rose sees a Boat on the Horizon and is frightened that it seems to be coming towards the beach....very slowly!
The family sleep in the sun, except Rose. And sure enough, the Oil Tanker has made its journey close to the beach as Tourists look on, However Worried that the tanker will not stop, The Sandfords gather their kids to escape what may be a Disaster. Thankfully no-one is hurt because of the tectonic speed of the Tanker. The police evacuated the beach where an officer exposits that beachings like this have being widespread recently due to glitches in Navigation Software.
Back at the House, All Technology is Acting up, But the kids are back in the pool, Ambivalent on what they saw "Like it's onto the Next Episode". In the garden the Parents spot two deer in the Treeline, No doubt the first victims to feed humanity during the Robot Apocalypse!
That night, there is a knock on the door. Fearing Robbery, Clay arms himself with an Art Decor Vase as a Baseball bat, only to see a man in a Tuxedo and his young daughter. He introduces himself as George (G.H.) Scott (Mahershala Ali), A Philharmonic Violinist and his daughter Ruth, Who Only had corresponded with Amanda via email, so she doesn't know what he looks or Sound Like, he tells a Story that Brooklyn has suffered a Blackout and with a Knee Injury and elevators out, G.H. couldn't climb to the 45th floor. The story is somewhat unbelievable, I mean why drive from your home to your second home, one you know is occupied? And we don't see a cast on George's leg. It also doesn't help Ruth is At Best an Elitist or at worst Rac*st towards White people.
G.H Scott tries to refund Amanda and Clay, but it's the middle of the night and she's not waking her children to leave, but George has a remedy, he Unlocks A hidden drawer in the wine cooler and gives Clay an Envelope with $1000. The Audience Is also shown there is a handgun in said drawer.
In the Main Bedroom, The Sandfords argue, Amanda convinced that the Scott's are the Help who are here to Rob a family of Strangers in a scam. Clay trusts them since they seem to know their way around.
Heading back into the kitchen, Amanda is Greeted by the strange sight of G.H making enough cocktails for everyone, which Clay readily grabs. Amanda flatly asks for G.H's identification, AND WOULDN'T YOU KNOW WHO WON THE PONY? But it seems George has left it in his other coat pocket! Amanda is about to call him a liar, until a loud noise startles her, the TV is working again. However, the National Emergency Signal Plays on all channels. So it looks like G.H's story is true. So Clay offers the Scotts to stay, hoping things look better in the morning. And that's when the Sandford's Interrupted game of Jenga topple over
SYMBOLISM!
The Scotts take the Cellar for the night, however it looks like G.H is a lot more than a simple Fiddle Player, when Ruth asks her father about "The Client". Upstairs Amanda is boiling over Ruth's attitude towards her. She is still not convinced the Scotts are not what they say they are, since they're no photos of them in the house. (WHICH AS A RENTAL, SO NO, THERE WOULDN'T BE!) They didn't tell anyone about the Oil Tanker as it Doesn't seem like it's connected, but Amanda is afraid it would confirm that it's all related somehow. For a Brief Moment, the TV news briefly returns to warn of a cyberattack, only for the screen to turn static.
PART II THE CURVE
The next day, Rose wakes Amanda to fix the TV. The Gen-Zer no doubt never seen Static before. Grabbing her phone, Amanda sees news updates about Nationwide hacking until the messages disappear. Clay gets an earful when it seems like Amanda fells like he doesn't believe her. Amanda tries to explain the Scott situation to Rose, but she doesn't care, she just wants to watch Friends. Clay is going into town to buy a newspaper to explain all this, Rose goes into the garden to see a Dozen or so deer just staring at her.
Amanda decides after Hearing that Ruth is an Unemployed Trust Fund Baby who insults her job, her age and the working class in General, she has decided, that she definitely, HATES THIS B***H!
G.H. acts nervous when Ruth tells her father about the News Alert Amanda got about Hackers. Amanda Suspicions grows when G.H. shows knowledge of the Real life "I-LOVE-YOU" Virus in 2000.
Ruth is worried about her Mother who is currently abroad in Morroco. George is hopeful that she is on a Redirected Flight, acting the Karen somewhere in Ohio.
Clay drives on an abandoned road. We cut to Ruth opening a Secret safe room covered in family photos to vape in. George checks on his neighbours home which seems abandoned. None of his messages to his wife have being received. He picks up his gun which was resting on a how to play violin manual for beginners-Something a Philharmonic Violinist should not have.
We get three slow burn reveals at the same time, cutting back and forward to build tension. G.H. investigating wet decking on the neighbour's house, Rose and Archie going into the woods to find deer. Clay finds a panicked immigrant who speaks only Spanish. G.H. finds a walkie talkie in a House Gutted through the garage with no car to be found. The kids find a Secret bunker in the woods and break into it. Each of them find something disturbing to end the scene. Archie makes out the bunker points to exactly Rose's window to scare his sister, who bumps her head from Archie's prank. G.H finds a Mummified body in beach sand before seeing dozens of bodies on the beach. And Clay sees in town a Drone Dropping hundreds of Blood red Pamphlets onto his car.
G.H Scott can't believe his eyes. EVERYONE IN TOWN IS DEAD! And now a plane crashes out of the sky, George covered in seawater by the impact he dodged.
G.H returns and lies about what he saw to Ruth as the protective father he is, Making her leave so she can fetch him a change of clothes. G.H confesses somewhat to knowing more than a Concert Violinist should know. That's when a Piercing screech rings out causing pain to all the humans.
THE SCREEN TURNS BLOOD RED!
PART III THE NOISE
After Regaining their Facilities, sometime later, everyone starts playing the blame game. Amanda sees through G.H's protecting his daughter, and Ruth plays the Race Card. Amanda remembers Seeing Kevin Bacon buying water and tinned goods. Turns out G.H knows him as Danny, a Contractor who's worked on his house before.
Clay returns, Shaken from what he saw. He had picked up a Pamphlet which the drone was dropping. We now see it's a symbol of a snake and some Arabic Text. Archie knows it says "De**h to America " because he plays Call of Duty.
The Sandfords try to leave for New Jersey, but George thinks there is something wrong with all this. If this was a Terrorist attack they would be dropping Manifestos in English. No, this feels like a cover up. Amanda wants to leave for her Family's safety and Ruth's not exactly sad to see as she Puts it "Those People" leave.
As they drive towards the State line, Rose hears Sirens. Up ahead is a Blockade of Electric cars, All Abandoned. Amanda discovers all the cars are brand new Teslas fresh from a dealership. That's when another self driving car, joins the Blockade, then another, then another Tesla joins the Blockade that stretches for miles!
Told ya Muskolini was Creating Weapons for The Tiny handed Tyrant!
The Sandfords return to the Summer home and it's only gonna get worse!
PART IV THE FLOOD
The rain hits the holiday home as everyone is Distraught, but with Archie p**ving on secret bikini pictures of Ruth, and Ruth sharing her Mara***na vape with Clay. The two families are slowly bringing out the worse of themselves.
George Reveals that he is in fact, not a spy, or government agent, but a banker, a banker who may have dealt with the Illuminati as his clients. But G.H tells the Story about how his client would profit from causing WW3 In a Jokey manner, causing Amanda not to believe him.
Rose Wakes up Archie, because she's still Upset she may never find out how Friends Ended. More Irritated on being Woken up than anything, Archie tells his sister rightfully that she should start caring about Real Things. Rose says she'll about to do something to get what she wants!
Back at pookside, Clay tells Ruth about the Mexican Woman who begged him for help, he then tells her finally about the Oil Tanker Beaching itself. To add to the Confusion, Flamingos land and nest onto the surface of the pool.
WHAT KIND OF STRONG SH*T IS IN YOUR VAPE, RUTH?
In a music room, Amanda and G.H are Dancing to Records that leads to a slow Dance. To stop this from being a seduction, G.H backs up, and expresses that he loves and misses his wife, even though he is very certain that she is Dead. It's possible in the eyes of Amanda, this is the only time G.H has being truthful. Amanda tries to comfort him, but then the noise returns.
When it stops, hours have passed. The Sandfords share a bed for warmth. Archie had contracted a fever. Rose using a plot from the West Wing as an Analogy as a roundabout way to say she's done waiting for answers. In the spare room, the Scotts also share a bed for warmth, but Ruth continues to drive a wedge between both Families, why do THEY have the main bedroom in THEIR House? She also admits that she is a Ra***t, the Possibility of being the only Black people on Earth playing heavy on her mind.
TRIGGER WARNING FOR GRUESOME SCENE
We see an Eclipse from the Surface of the moon, The next morning Archie wakes with his fever broken, but then he spits up blood and pulls his teeth out from his own mouth.
CHAPTER V
THE LAST ONE
After seeing this, Archie says he had a Bug bite yesterday. G.H says it's no doubt Lyme Disease.
Lyme Disease may Contribute to weakened gums that may lead to tooth loss but this is usually years down the road, not 12 hours after the fact.
With the Expressway Jammed with Eejit-lon's E-cars, The only way to the Emergency Room is blocked, that is, if there is even Anyone else there, But G.H has a plan. If Danny is still alive, if he's every bit of the Tinfoil hat that he thinks he is, he's sure to have medical supplies.
But of course, if things can get worse, then they get worse, as now Rose is Missing! With now being the time Archie tells the adults about the bunker they found. Archie Vomits more blood. And the men take him to see Danny, George telling Ruth to stay at the House and relay the message to Amanda. Ruth panics that what's happening to Archie is just the first of whatever God has sent to finish them. But George tells her to set a timer for one hour on her phone, promising to be back by then.
The two women find the bunker, and nothing else, so they start back at each other's throat. Ruth cries because she knows her mother is dead and she will never know where. But she asks Amanda why she is the way she is. She says as an Advertising Executive, she sees Greed and Jealousy on a regular basis. And it sickens her. Humanity Disgusts her. "We F**k each other over, we've F**ked the Earth over and we think it's fine now because we drink from paper straws and order Free Range Chicken"
Ruth tells her they may be the only ones left. That's when they hear quickening footsteps and something runs by the window at speed, the men drive to Danny's house, passing a home where Rose is looking out the window watching George's car drive past.
Danny is curt with his neighbours and meets them with a shotgun. He tells him Archie's Symptoms, compounded with the Noise, Points to Microwave Weaponry, it'll explain the noise and the rising heat to occupy flamingos and possibly the fever. But Danny Refuses to help, not even the 1000 dollars Clay has will Sway Danny. Amanda finds A bike Trail and turns towards the Bunker to see Deer, Hundreds of them just staring at Ruth, Surrounding her. Danny Raises his Gun at G.H But he refuses to leave. Amanda returns to Ruth to scream the deer away. Back at Danny's, Clay pleads with the money saying he's nothing but a Useless, selfish man without his Technology, but he will feel even worse if his son dies of something curable. The Deer Run off and Danny gives Clay some Medicine. Clay shows Danny the Pamphlet and he laughs, saying he has a friend in Sacramento who saw a similar event and those Pamphlets were in Korean. Or Maybe Chinese, the fact is, his buddy served on the Gulf and he knew that writing was not Arabic.
Back With the Two Women, Ruth sees something in the distance something that stops her in her tracks. G.H Wants to find the Bunker Danny mentioned. Because it seems like George has Realized his client has underwent his 3-Step plan to profit from overthrowing the government. He explained his friend went over in detail on how he would do it. 1) Disable all Communications 2) Miscommunication on the identity of the supposed enemy and then 3) with everyone confused, Civil war and Collapse will surely follow. The Timer on Ruth's phone echoes as the 2 women see New York is being Destroyed by this Civil war. Time Really is Up.
And so the film ends on the cruelest of Notes. In the house where Danny says there's a Bunker with the voices of everyone screaming Rose's Name. Rose had broken in, Ate the Neighbours food and explored the house. Ignoring a screen telling her that Radiation outside is increasing, Rose finds a Tv hooked up to a DVD player with a library of tv show box sets. Finding Friends last season, Rose selfishly screws over her family to no doubt contract radiation poisoning in the forest just so she can watch A Sitcom.
 |
| "A BIT RICH, BUT OK!" |
Actually, More than Ok! Suspenseful, Nicely Acted with Nuanced, Morally Grey characters that felt real, You may Cringe at the Blackhearted Nature, But Hopefully it may never happen, but Greed and Self-Preservation has happened in times of war. Despite my Tv listings magazine getting the plot wrong, this was still a great recommendation to get.
The Ending may just be the Cruelest Ending of all with a point to Prove, The Next Generations if we are not careful, will inherit our selfish nature and will not be equipped to deal without help. The Last scene shows that point. She's the only one who will not get poisoned, but now she'll inherit a world beyond her understanding, and unwillingness to learn. She finally got what she wanted...and once the show is over....She'll pay for it!
A Chilling Film, Which I Hope doesn't turn from Science Fiction to Documentary before 2029!
From a Realistic Apocalyptic Threat, to One a bit more Light-hearted. Join me next Month when we find out what the hell went wrong With Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire!
CREDITS
Leave The World Behind was Reviewed, Compiled and Edited by Eamonn Bermingham, with Media from:
Leave The World Behind
Monty Python and The Holy Grail
Sakura Miko's playthrough of Detroit: Becoming Human representing Hololive.
Doctor Who.
She-ra Princess of power
Michael Rosen performs "The Hollywood"
Leave the World Behind was Produced By Esmail Corp, Red Om Productions and Higher Ground Productions.
All Rights Reserved. All Media used Belong to their respective owners.
