Sam Esmail, take a bow. The style, pace, punch and composition of this contemporary cyber thriller is top notch, a film that feels no where near it's 141 minute runtime. Harrowing, darkly humorous and while also being a poignant, cautionary tale, Leave The World Behind is dripping in Sam Esmails signature style while telling an equally depressing, all-too-real story that touches on many themes surrounding the human condition in the modern day, as well as environmentalism and technology reliance. Fantastic movie, I can't wait to watch this one again.
-- Spoiler-filled ramblings below --
I really love the topics that Sam Esmail tackles, and the lens with which he frames them. It's an interesting look at the destabilization of a country after a, worryingly plausible, large scale cyberattack. The movie critiques our over reliance on digital conveniences and champions older, more analogue technologies as a more reliable, persistent alternative. The virtues of physical media, maps, books, vinyls and even candles are pushed to the forefront here, reminding us that our devices are all useless without the power of the network behind them. It also critiques our inability to trust our fellow man due to the digital echo chambers we've built ourselves, and the prejudices these spaces create within us without ever meeting the people it warns us about. Additionally, it shows the younger generations, unheard and toothless (heh) in their protests while being actively ignored by the elders, resorting to over consumption of food, material possessions and media to escape and block out the incoming end of the world. There's also commentary on the environment and pollution, with plastic haphazardly buried under the sand on the beech, and the wildlife encroaching back onto the land we've built our overtly large accommodations on. Still trying to put my finger on why all the rooms in the movie are overly blue, it was garish how much blue was in the first apartment shot and the beach front home that G.H. owned. Great movie, I guess I should buy and read the book now.
Review by XiofireBlockedParent2023-12-11T10:49:57Z
Sam Esmail, take a bow. The style, pace, punch and composition of this contemporary cyber thriller is top notch, a film that feels no where near it's 141 minute runtime. Harrowing, darkly humorous and while also being a poignant, cautionary tale, Leave The World Behind is dripping in Sam Esmails signature style while telling an equally depressing, all-too-real story that touches on many themes surrounding the human condition in the modern day, as well as environmentalism and technology reliance. Fantastic movie, I can't wait to watch this one again.
-- Spoiler-filled ramblings below --
I really love the topics that Sam Esmail tackles, and the lens with which he frames them. It's an interesting look at the destabilization of a country after a, worryingly plausible, large scale cyberattack. The movie critiques our over reliance on digital conveniences and champions older, more analogue technologies as a more reliable, persistent alternative. The virtues of physical media, maps, books, vinyls and even candles are pushed to the forefront here, reminding us that our devices are all useless without the power of the network behind them. It also critiques our inability to trust our fellow man due to the digital echo chambers we've built ourselves, and the prejudices these spaces create within us without ever meeting the people it warns us about. Additionally, it shows the younger generations, unheard and toothless (heh) in their protests while being actively ignored by the elders, resorting to over consumption of food, material possessions and media to escape and block out the incoming end of the world. There's also commentary on the environment and pollution, with plastic haphazardly buried under the sand on the beech, and the wildlife encroaching back onto the land we've built our overtly large accommodations on. Still trying to put my finger on why all the rooms in the movie are overly blue, it was garish how much blue was in the first apartment shot and the beach front home that G.H. owned. Great movie, I guess I should buy and read the book now.