Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- jittery
- paranoid
- foreboding
- late night thriller viewing
- discussion night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the suspense, ensemble performances, and social commentary, while finding the adaptation and passive, punchline-like ending uneven.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Amanda and Clay Sandford’s affluent vacation is disrupted by the arrival of the home’s owners, forcing two families with different social positions into uneasy cooperation.
The cyberattack disables phones, internet access, transportation, and other forms of communication, leaving the characters unable to interpret or escape the crisis.
The characters receive fragmented signs of a nationwide breakdown but cannot establish who caused it, how far it extends, or what will happen next.
Overhead cinematography and remote-looking compositions frame the characters as observed and manipulated within a crisis they cannot control.
Films like Leave the World Behind, and why
The Invitation
shares psychological thriller tension, social critique, and an ordinary family confronting an inexplicable societal breakdown
10 Cloverfield Lane
shares apocalyptic uncertainty, family survival pressures, and grounded contemporary dread
The One I Love
shares paranoia thriller structure, technological disruption, and affluent characters losing control of their environment
The Mist
shares unsettling social allegory, escalating crisis, and intimate domestic conflict under extraordinary conditions
Movie Details
- Director
- Sam Esmail
- Release Date
- 2023-11-22
- Runtime
- 140 min
- Rating
- 6.4 / 10 (3444)
Cast
- Julia Roberts
- Ethan Hawke
- Mahershala Ali
- Myha'la
- Farrah Mackenzie
- Charlie Evans
- Kevin Bacon
- Vanessa Aspillaga
- Orli Gottesman
- Alexis Rae Forlenza
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Leave the World Behind about?
- Two families sharing a luxury Long Island rental confront a technologically induced collapse that turns social distrust into a fight for meaning and survival.
- What is Leave the World Behind like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Leave the World Behind as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Leave the World Behind violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Leave the World Behind as mild.
- What did critics think of Leave the World Behind?
- Critics broadly praised the suspense, ensemble performances, and social commentary, while finding the adaptation and passive, punchline-like ending uneven.
- Which films are like Leave the World Behind?
- Films with a similar feel include The Invitation, 10 Cloverfield Lane, The One I Love, and The Mist.
- How long is Leave the World Behind?
- Leave the World Behind runs 140 minutes.
- Where can I watch Leave the World Behind?
- In United States, Leave the World Behind streams on Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads.
