Leave

A masterfully told film full of suspense and deeply moving
I had a chance to see this film at the Gasparilla Film festival - where it won both the audience award and best film! Robert Celestino is a master storyteller who grabs you in the opening minutes of this film and never lets you go. The movie is full of suspense and wonderful performances by all involved. This is a true indie gem that must be seen! It is an exciting and deeply moving film.

A captivating and well-told film, although you may have seen it before...
Leave follows Henry, a successful writer, who has been haunted by the same nightmare for 6 months. In order to decode the dream, Henry decides to leave to his isolated 2nd home and work on a new novel. While traveling, he runs into a strangely familiar drifter at a diner; a stranger with information that shocks Henry and has the potential to change his life. Leave is a captivating and well-told film, although you may have seen it before.

Leave's story is captivating and interesting; it has engaging dialogue/conversations, and some great twists. However, if you've seen films like this before, you may be able to guess the main twist a long way before the end, since it isn't completely original; regardless, I won't spoil it. The story moves at a very fast pace, working solely off its dialogue, which is impressive. Leave uses its time wisely, and is over before you know it. (the film is 1hr 13 minutes without credits.) And, although it may be a bit predicable, the ending...

Something Very Different
Though not for the fast action/ultra-realism crowd, LEAVE is a somberly beautiful little film. It goes deep without trying too hard to do so. It's truly haunting and unpretentiously raises questions about our notions of life, death, and reality. Well-filmed and well-acted, with a solid but unconventional storyline.

I found the middle portions draggy and frustrating, but they paid off in the end. LEAVE doesn't always make perfect sense along the way but ultimately adds together. You'll see what I mean.

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