Directed by:
Sam EsmailScreenplay:
Sam EsmailCinematography:
Tod CampbellComposer:
Mac QuayleCast:
Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, Mahershala Ali, Myha'la, Farrah Mackenzie, Charlie Evans, Kevin Bacon, Alexis Rae Forlenza, Vanessa Aspillaga, Josh Drennen (more)VOD (1)
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In this apocalyptic thriller from award-winning writer and director Sam Esmail (Mr. Robot), Amanda (Julia Roberts) and her husband Clay (Ethan Hawke), rent a luxurious home for the weekend with their kids, Archie (Charlie Evans) and Rose (Farrah Mackenzie). Their vacation is soon upended when two strangers – G.H. (Mahershala Ali) and his daughter Ruth (Myha'la Herrold) – arrive in the night, bearing news of a mysterious cyberattack and seeking refuge in the house they claim is theirs. The two families reckon with a looming disaster that grows more terrifying by the minute, forcing everyone to come to terms with their places in a collapsing world. (Netflix)
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Reviews (13)
Praise for the first four chapters: It's as if elements from the best disaster flicks of the last three decades came together. The suspicion of something dangerous, like in Take Shelter, and the view of a global catastrophe through the microcosm of ordinary people who have no influence on the situation, like in Spielberg's War of the Worlds. Sam Esmail builds the tension of each scene fantastically (I'll remember the tanker for a long time), with clever camera rides that make it all look very cinematic – I couldn't count the iconic scenes with the fingers on one hand. The actors are all man great, except for the young boy, and Mahershala Ali gives it his best performance. With him, all it takes is one scene of him telling his ominous tale to Juliet over wine and it gives you the chills of a first-rate horror film. The daughter's adoration of Friends and her main concern for how the last episode turned out, even though everything is going to shit around her in real life, is such an apt satirical dig at the need of some shallow-minded individuals for whom even the slightest banality is enough to fulfill life. Unfortunately, it loses it's previous mojo in the last instructional chapter. The mystery evaporates and its explanation is like something out of a Trumpist paranoid pamphlet about how the whole world is against the US and that the truth is in the hands of the preppers who have had their packs of basic necessities ready for years, or who have thrown their entire savings into an underground bunker. I think that on Judgment Day I’ll be taking a quiet nap :o)
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A more thoughtful, tense and overall more minimalist version of Civil War with a gradually escalating atmosphere in the style of Take Shelter. Technically outstanding. Great cinematography and editing. Superb acting, a shame some elements were left unexplained and perhaps the conclusion was too rushed given the carefully constructed build up to the finale.
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Sam Esmail, the creator of the praised series Mr. Robot, directs an apocalyptic psychological thriller about a cyber attack for Netflix, with a decent cast and definitely higher potential. But Esmail and Netflix deserve a thumbs up, as there can never be enough good mystery conspiracy thrillers. Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, Mahershala Ali, and even Kevin Bacon in a smaller role make a for a good ensemble cast, so even though it is mainly a conversational drama-thriller with a longer running time than healthy, the film is fortunately not boring. (Of course, it depends on the individual.) I liked the mysterious atmosphere that accompanies the whole film, the division into chapters, and the craftsmanship. The few apocalyptic shots are very nice (although they could have been longer and there could have been more of them). There are plenty of questions and few answers, which wouldn't be a problem if the film didn't have a strange ending where you expect a proper twist and gets that instead. I always have the feeling that when filmmakers are unsure how to end the film and are afraid they don't have a well-thought-out twist, they end it randomly like this, but this doesn't apply in this case. I'm not completely thrilled about it, I expected a bigger mindfuck experience, but compared to the latest Shyamalan, it's definitely a class better. Although there were a few things that bothered me, overall I have no problem with it, and the film receives a weaker 4 stars from me. However, the idea is definitely terrifying. 7/10.
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Sam Esmail serves up a slow platter of nervs with no easy answers. It will annoy everyone, but I always liked these questions and stories. A depressing drama with a satirical patina. The three-pronged attack is a very interesting theme. You'd think Europe would be entering the first phase, so good luck with that. A formally brilliant exercise, with great performances. Though they might as well have left the drunken dancing Julia Roberts on the cutting room floor. Since Netflix likes it long. P.S: A must for fans of Friends and Matthew Perry's death as a thoughtful marketing ploy? A joke worthy of Chandler.
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This film is the kind that will have people either giving it one star or five. Essentially, nothing happens, but at the same time, everything does. It's an apocalypse in real-time where you learn nothing but are enveloped in an overwhelmingly tense atmosphere. The only downside is the lack of memorable scenes. However, the few that we get are absolutely phenomenal. I really appreciate how the filmmakers created a movie brimming with perfect tension from an atmosphere of complete uncertainty. As the movie approached its end, with a runtime exceeding two hours that flew by, I was almost dreading a typical American-style explanation that could ruin it. But to my immense relief, it didn’t happen. The film’s ending is just perfect, and very much fitting the genre.
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