Netflix R-Rated Apocalyptic Thriller Makes You Start Looking For Shelter
Many people truly do take it for granted how much they rely on modern technology. People hear stories about doomsday survivalists who prepare for the end of the world by having underground bunkers filled with canned food, and it sounds comical. But realistically, it would not be that difficult for our modern reliance on technology to cripple us, and that is an outcome that Leave the World Behind examines.
Small Inconveniences Beget Larger Catastrophes
The 2023 Netflix film is based on the novel of the same name by author Rumaan Alam, released in 2020. Leave the World Behind explores how frightening and isolated the world would suddenly feel to people who have become so dependent on technology like Wi-Fi and TVs. We like to think of these functions as things we use for convenience, but in reality, many people would become much more helpless without them.
Leave the World Behind starts off with the grid going down and the characters first dealing with the minor inconveniences it causes them. They become irritated about not having lights. They are disappointed about not being able to watch their favorite show. But then the greater dangers start to reveal themselves.
“Can You Hear Me Now?”
Planes begin to fall from the sky due to their systems no longer being able to function. News of a possible hacker or terrorist group being behind the outages surfaces, but none of the characters can access the internet or a news station to learn the truth. Deprived of information and facing growing danger, the group becomes frightened and paranoid.
Leave the World Behind starts out as a getaway vacation plot but shows the realities of how scary a getaway can be when you do not have an easy way to return to everyday life again.
Getting Away From It All …
For a movie primarily aimed at being a Netflix release (minus a run in select theaters about a week beforehand) the movie also has quite a strong lineup for the cast. Leave the World Behind stars Julia Roberts and Ethan Hawke as a wife and husband trying to treat their family to a getaway at a rental property. Things begin to go awry when a man claiming to own the rental, played by Mahershala Ali, returns with his daughter, played by Myha’la, saying there was a blackout in the city and they need shelter at their home.
Doesn’t Take Long To Synthesize An Enemy
Beyond the doomsday survival aspect of the movie, Leave the World Behind also has undertones of racial dynamics in the country. Ali and Myha’la’s characters are black, and it is no coincidence that the start of the issues in the movie centers on possible terrorist activity in New York. The movie uses this juxtaposition to show how quickly Julia Roberts’ character becomes suspicious of people different than her, being hesitant to help the ostensible homeowners when they arrive.
Everything Can Change In The Blink Of An Eye
At its heart, Leave the World Behind not only shows how quickly we become helpless without technology, but also how quickly people turn on each other in a crisis. People like to believe they would band together to help one another in an emergency, but Leave the World Behind also refers to how fast society leaves behind all of our rules and decency when what we know is threatened. The ease with which that happens is one of the most frightening aspects of this apocalyptic thriller, which you can stream on Netflix today.
