Leave The World Behind ★☆☆☆☆
If you’re in the mood for a disaster thriller, Leave the World Behind might seem like an enticing option—at first glance. After all, it’s got a powerhouse cast led by Julia Roberts, Mahershala Ali, and Ethan Hawke, plus a plot promising apocalyptic tension. But this film, directed by Sam Esmail, squanders its star-studded potential in a meandering, unsatisfying mess of pretentious filmmaking.
The story centers on two families—a well-off white family, the Sandfords, enjoying a vacation in a secluded luxury rental, and the Scotts, a Black couple who suddenly show up claiming the world outside is falling apart. As the outside world succumbs to a massive, unexplained cyberattack, the group must confront the breakdown of society…and their personal differences. Racial and class tensions, rather than the typical zombie apocalypse or alien invasion, form the core of the conflict. Unfortunately, this premise holds more promise than what the movie ultimately delivers.
Leave the World Behind dabbles in heavy-handed social commentary, exploring race, privilege, and societal collapse. The problem? It feels about as subtle as a jackhammer. The film stops just shy of calling Roberts’ Amanda a racist, instead painting her as an embodiment of white fragility—self-centered and tone-deaf to the plight of Ruth (played by Myha’la Herrold), whose mother has disappeared. The racial tension is there, but handled with all the finesse of a soap opera subplot. Rather than delivering insightful commentary, the film leans on surface-level social critique, which is never developed enough to feel meaningful.
Sam Esmail, known for Mr. Robot, goes all out with dramatic camera movements and chaotic visuals. Planes fall from the sky, deer ominously roam the countryside, and Teslas apparently develop homicidal tendencies (no, seriously). Esmail clearly enjoys playing with the film’s aesthetic, but the visual excess often overshadows the plot, creating a disjointed experience. Esmail’s frenetic style doesn’t bring tension—it just induces exhaustion.
Even the A-list cast can’t salvage this mess. Julia Roberts’ Amanda is grating and unsympathetic, and Mahershala Ali’s G.H. spends more time flirting than leading. Ethan Hawke’s Clay is the archetypal inept dad, and his character arc goes nowhere fast. Myha’la Herrold, as Ruth, offers some emotional depth, but she’s trapped in a script that’s more interested in awkward metaphors than developing its characters. By the end, you’re left wondering why anyone thought this ensemble could fix such lifeless material.
At a bloated 141 minutes, the film drags on interminably. It spends far too long building toward an apocalypse that never really arrives, and even the climactic moments—like teeth falling out and a sudden encounter with a survivalist played by Kevin Bacon—feel more ridiculous than thrilling. There’s a lot of build-up with no payoff, which leaves the film’s conclusion unsatisfying. The movie ends as abruptly as it began, with flamingos in the pool and a random Friends DVD, leaving viewers puzzled and annoyed.
This movie’s title may be Leave the World Behind, but I found myself mentally leaving the movie behind about halfway through. Its ham-fisted social commentary and pointless narrative twists are about as enjoyable as trying to get through a blackout with no Wi-Fi and nothing but Friends reruns on DVD. Ironically, that’s precisely where the film strands its characters—and its audience.
Leave the World Behind is an exercise in how to take an intriguing concept and waste it. If you’re hoping for a sharp apocalyptic thriller or a gripping social commentary, look elsewhere. This is a film that tries to be deep but ends up shallow, leaving both your patience and your faith in Netflix Original movies severely tested. If you’re looking for two-plus hours of overwrought melodrama, bizarre tech-induced chaos, and flamingos (so many flamingos!), then by all means, give it a shot. For everyone else, skip it.
