Boasting an impeccable 100% score on famous film review site Rotten Tomatoes, it ranks alongside cinema’s giants and even edges out titans like Casino Royale, Unforgiven, Pulp Fiction and Halloween in a list of the best 300 films ever made.
Critics heap praise on it for its “masterfully done” production, calling it “deeply intelligent” with remarkable performances that have been matched by very few others, with one declaring: “It’s a movie that will live with me for a long time.”
Yet, despite universal acclaim, the 2018 release Leave No Trace may have slipped under your radar. With a quiet debut, no household names in its cast and a modest box office return of just £5m, it’s a hidden gem.
What is Leave No Trace about?
Leave No Trace tells the story of a war veteran and his teenage daughter who live in a nature reserve near Portland, Oregon, seldom interacting with the outside world. They secretly reside in a tent, their days filled with reading and cooking by fire, until a chance encounter with a hiker causes things to go wrong.
Is Leave No Trace based on a true story?
While the film doesn’t strictly adhere to real-life events, it’s reportedly based on the true story of a father and daughter who lived undetected in a campsite within Portland’s Forest Park for years until 2004. A 2004 report in The Oregonian newspaper recounted how Portland police received a tip-off from a cross-country runner about “suspicious people” in the park, described as “an older man with bushy white hair and a beard and a young girl in a remote part of the park” who “looked as though they’d been camping there for a long time”.
The report continued: “After an extensive search, police located the pair the next day hiding a short distance from an elaborate camp dug into a steep hillside. Under a tarp-covered, wood-framed shelter, they found sleeping bags, a partially burnt log, a stack of old World Book Encyclopedias, rakes and other tools. A rope swing, a tilled vegetable garden and a small creek were nearby.
“The man and girl told police they had lived in the park for four years. Police were amazed to find them clean, well-fed and healthy. They said the 12-year-old girl was well-spoken beyond her years.”
Who are the stars of Leave No Trace?
The father and daughter roles are portrayed by Ben Foster and Thomasin McKenzie in this film directed by Debra Granik, who, despite not being widely recognised, has been hailed as “exceptional” by Guardian film critic Peter Bradshaw and launched Jennifer Lawrence’s career in a previous film. The New York Times praised the film’s lead actors, stating: “Neither actor begs for your heart, but each – like this movie – takes it.”
It said of director, Ms Granik: “She looks hard and by looking encourages us to see the beauty – and meaning – in the everyday”.
What are the reviews for Leave No Trace?
Leave No Trace boasts an impressive 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator site, placing it amongst the ranks of esteemed films such as Seven Samurai and 12 Angry Men.
The Guardian’s film critic described it as a “deeply intelligent, complex, finely tuned and observed movie”. Brian Eggert from Deep Focus Review noted that the director “brilliantly delivers the viewer into the characters’ spatially and socially secluded world, making otherwise normal, crowded living environments seem oppressive and even dangerous by comparison”. Renowned British film critic Mark Kermode hailed it as the best film of 2018.
Where can I stream Leave No Trace?
Leave No Trace is available to stream on Netflix with a subscription and can be rented on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV and YouTube.