It’s a classic Chicken and the Egg problem: Is this movie significant because it was Executive Produced by Barack and Michelle Obama? Or is it because of its A-List casting? Academy Award winners Julia Roberts andMahershala Ali star, plus Ethan Hawke and of course, Kevin Bacon.
For starters, what does it mean to be an Executive Producer? Traditionally, it means an outsized financial investment in the film’s budget, with the promise of a return on that investment. Alternatively, it is more of an honorary title, likely to compensate for some nonfinancial support in making the movie. My guess is that the second choice is most accurate.
The President and First Lady support ties into the subject matter of the End of the World story.
Julia Roberts (Amanda) and Ethan Hawke (Clay) are a White married couple and decide on a whim to go on vacation from New York City to the Hamptons. After they check into their rented McMansion with their two children, the first night they get a knock at the door from two Black people, father George (Mahershala Ali) and daughter Ruth (Myha’la Herrold). The racial dynamics are bubbling at the top of the movie. George announces that he is the owner of the home and needs to stay there. Amanda refuses, and barely believes the story. But they compromise and six people are now uneasily in the house.
There is some type of 9/11 or “End of the World” or Disturbance in the Force activity occurring in the background. Phones, internet, GPS are down and thus information is scarce. Who can believe what? There are many elements of conflict: Black v. White, Rich v. Poor, Prepared v. Unprepared, Knowledge v. Ignorance.
The movie is a very Alfred Hitchcock mystery, with elements of The Birds (1963) (an unknown force acting against the protagonists), Vertigo (1958) (nothing is as it seems) and North By Northwest (1959) (no safety even in a rural area). Many unusual camera angles add to the disorientation.
The fact that a former President is involved suggests that some of the ideas have a kernel of truth to them. In that respect, various plot points seem “Ripped from the Headlines.”
Is it all that much different from other End of the World movies like 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) or This is The End (2013)? It certainly approaches the topic from a more News angle than a Science Fiction angle. But which is it? The good news is: there is no right answer.
**** of 5
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