Film Review: LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND

Julia Roberts sinks to a new low in Leave the World Behind, just starting a run on Netflix. Not only is her performance amateurish, but she looks like a haggard crone in this depressing tale of a war waged by some unknown entity that destroys the country's power grid in a far-reaching cyber attack.

Julia Roberts having a bad time.

Amanda (Roberts) and Clay (Ethan Hawke), a harried married couple living in Brooklyn with their two kids, rent an extravagant Long Island beach house for a long weekend. On day one their getaway is interrupted by the late-night arrival of a black man named George (Mahershala Ali) and his young daughter, who claim to be fleeing an unsettling event in the outside world and have returned to the safety of their own home. 

Amanda's loathsome racism surfaces as she doubts George could be the homeowner, despite his impeccable attire and sophisticated demeanor. Clay, more trusting and forgiving, says sure, come in, we'll talk about it in the morning. So George and his daughter go sleep in their own basement for the night.

But the morning brings a whole lot more to talk about. Like airplanes falling from the sky, oil tankers going aground on the beach, herds of deer surrounding the house and the loss of power cutting off all news of world events. No internet, no radio or TV, no nothing to explain the loud booms coming from the sky and the flock of flamingos in the swimming pool. What's happening? They all try to figure it out, to no avail. 

A cameo by Kevin Bacon as a prepper neighbor brandishing a shotgun is almost comical, since his perfect Hollywood-white teeth are blatantly at odds with his rustic, lumberjack character. (Oops, whoever responsible for that was probably fired.)

The ending, like the whole movie, is unclear. It's either the Russians or the Iranians or the Chinese out to get us. Whoever, someone dropped leaflets from airplanes that say "Death to America." Best advice: Don't watch right before bedtime.