Left Behind (2014)
Left Behind is a 2014 American Christian apocalyptic thriller film directed by Vic Armstrong and written by Paul LaLonde and John Patus. Based on the 1995 novel, the film depicts the Christian Rapture as a worldwide disaster, focusing on a family, including a husband (airline pilot Rayford Steele) and wife facing marital difficulties, and their two children.
Chloe Steele, a University of Central Arkansas student, arrives home to surprise her father, Rayford, for his birthday party. However, her mother informs her that her father cannot make it. Chloe meets investigative reporter Cameron “Buck” Williams at the airport, and Rayford apologizes for missing his birthday party and assures her that things are fine between himself and his wife, who recently became a proselytizing Christian.
Chloe suspects that things are not fine between her parents, as she has seen Rayford flirting with flight attendant Hattie Durham and removing his wedding ring. An airport worker hands Chloe tickets for a concert in London, proving that Rayford had planned the trip in advance.
Chloe takes her brother to the mall, where he vanishes into thin air, leaving his clothes behind. Mayhem breaks loose as shoppers loot stores, a driverless car plows through the mall windows, and a small plane without a pilot crashes into the parking lot. Chloe sees television reports of children and some adults disappearing, as worldwide panic sets in.
On Rayford’s flight, several passengers, including his co-pilot Chris Smith, Kimmy, and children, disappear. The remaining passengers panic and demand answers. Rayford tries to reassure them and passes on information. A pilot-less jet approaches, causing a midair collision and damaging Rayford’s fuel line. He decides to return to New York and hope his fuel holds out.
On the ground, Chloe hears her father’s Mayday call and assumes his plane has crashed. She finds her mother’s jewelry left behind, as she has also disappeared. At her mother’s church, family pastor Bruce Barnes explains that God has taken his believers to heaven, and the rest face the end of days. Rayford agrees with this conclusion after finding evidence of religious belief in his copilot and stewardess’ personal effects.
Chloe climbs to the top of a bridge, intending to commit suicide, but receives a call from Buck in the cockpit. Rayford explains that all New York-area airports are closed and the streets are full, and he is low on fuel. Chloe finds an abandoned truck and uses her compass app to find the landing site. Rayford glides to a rough landing, saving the passengers, who leave the plane only to see the world aflame. As the film ends, Buck observes that it looks like the end of the world, while Chloe responds that it is just the beginning.