Downhill

Greetings again from the darkness. Overwhelming apprehension. That's the feeling I had walking into the theatre for the Americanized re-make of one of my top 10 favorite movies from 2014 ... FORCE MAJEURE. Sure, it's common practice for U.S. filmmakers to farm international cinema for "new" projects, but when they mess with the really good ones, I can't help but feel nervous to the point of dread. A sliver of hope existed since this new version was co-written (along with Jesse Armstrong, creator of "Succession", and Oscar nominated for IN THE LOOP) and co-directed by Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, the creative forces behind THE WAY WAY BACK (2013).

Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Will Ferrell star as married couple Billie and Pete. Along with their two teenage sons, they are on an Austrian ski trip meant to help Pete get through grieving his father's death, and bring the family closer together. If you have seen the original or the trailer, you know what happens next. Pete's reaction to a near catastrophic event creates a divide between him and the family ... especially Billie, who is left shaken. This part is all quite similar to the original film, yet this version is different in so many ways.

Casting two brilliant comedic performers in the lead sends a strong signal that humor will play a role, and that the exceptional gravitas from filmmaker Ruben Ostlund's FORCE MAJEURE will be softened somewhat. Both of those points hold true. However, surprisingly, this re-make manages to still generate some of the shaken-to-the-core emotions that come from having trust broken in such a startling manner. Ms. Louis-Dreyfus is especially strong here, and carries a much heavier load than Mr. Ferrell. As she is balancing her shock, frustration, and anger, while still attending to their equally shaken boys, Mr. Ferrell is relegated to spending much of the film wearing a wounded puppy look as he attempts to move on without addressing the issue.

Adding to the comedy elements are Zoe Chao ("The Comeback") and Zach Woods ("The Office") as Pete's friends who get drawn into the fracas. Miranda Otto takes a break from her usually dramatic roles to play Charlotte, a wacky resort employee whose personality is a bit out of step with normalcy; although her zaniness succeeds in preventing the weight of the event from crushing Billie. Fans of the original will recognize Kristofer Hivju, who plays a resort security advisor this time. Another difference is that the kids (Julian Grey, Ammon Jacob Ford) play a bigger role in the family dynamics and fallout.

It's clear that filmmakers Faxon and Rash set out to purposefully make a more mainstream, accessible movie than the Swedish version. The film remains effective at generating conversation about survival instinct and protecting one's loved ones. It should be mentioned that this is not a typical Will Ferrell movie, and anyone expecting Frank the Tank, may only be pleased with one brief scene. Instead, this is about a man coming to grips with how his actions affected his family, and even his view of himself.

This film tells the story of a family holiday going desperately wrong.

I guess people expect this to be a comedy, but it in fact is a drama that involves a lot of bickering and negativity. It's not a bad film, just not necessarily what people want to watch for escapism.

I was interested in seeing this film because I love Julie Louis Dreyfus' acting and Jessie Armstrong's writing. To be fair I'm not a fan of Will Ferrell but I thought with a good leading lady, good writing and a wonderful story..how can you go wrong?? Boy did it go wrong. Boring dialogue, slow and tedious, bad acting (Will Ferrell) and no real story.

It was neither a comedy or a drama. If it was intended to be both it failed on each front. The intended comedic/dramatic lines were dull and pedestrian. Although I'm not giving up on Ms. Dreyfus or Jessie Armstrong's genius, I'd recommend just skipping this one.

Billie (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and Pete Staunton (Will Ferrell) are on an Austrian ski vacation with their two boys. Charlotte (Miranda Otto) is the sex obsessed resort manager. Something happens which puts doubt into the Staunton marriage.

This is an American remake of the great film, Force Majeure, by Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund. It has been rewritten and directed by comedic actors, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash. They have become a great filmmaker duo following two poignant films with nice comedic touches; The Way Way Back and The Descendants. This one is a great disappointment. As a remake, this is an utter failure. It takes the unsaid and say it out loud. It takes the regular life and makes it wacky. While there are some compelling moves, this keeps feeling wrong.

I try to envision not watching Force Majeure first and imagine watching this with virgin eyes. I don't know who came up with Charlotte but she seems to inhabit a wacky Will Ferrell comedy. I do not like Otto's accent or her character. The movie is trying to be wacky and then like an avalanche, it tries to be serious. It can be funny and serious but wackiness can often clash. In the big overarching premise, it's trying to be a wacky ski comedy from the 80's with a gigolo ski teacher and a swinging manager. It doesn't need it and doesn't want it. There are moments that intrigue me. I didn't really like Zach and Rosie except one moment at the end of the scene where Rosie is looking at Zach. I like the resolution of Billie and Pete but it goes a step too far. That's this movie at its core. I like a lot of it but it always goes one step too far. I hate Charlotte and the movie would be far superior without her. Overall, this has some moments but it keeps getting it wrong.

I thought this was a comedy. It is not. Also, it is not a drama. It's like watching a home movie with two people who don't really love, or like, each other very much. And then nothing happens. Two of my favorite comedic actors are in this bucket of boredom and that makes me sad.