Downhill (2020)

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Downhill is the story of a fragile relationship of a married couple who spend a ski vacation in the Alps with their two young sons. Their vacation is punctuated with unexpected challenges, tension and misadventure.

Those of you who were lucky enough to have seen the excellent 2014 Swedish movie "Force Majeure" directed by Ruben Ostlund will immediately recognise the story in Downhill. That's because this is the American remake of Force Majeure but done more as a black comedy rather than its more dramatic Swedish origin. I have to admit that I was a bit apprehensive when I learnt that this was a remake and had my expectations set on low since the origin was such a breakout movie. However, I am happy to report that this version is just as entertaining and engrossing even though it does loses its impact some what if you know the gist of the story and what happens next. That s thanks largely to a competent script that is always lively and amusing, and some really good performances all round particularly from its leads Will Ferrell and Julia Louis-Dreyfus (who was recently shining in another role, providing the voice of the mother in Pixar's Onward). The beautiful Austrian Alps provides a refreshing backdrop often stealing the scenes whenever we are outdoors.

Much of what worked in the original is also well presented here in a more approachable manner. While most of the movie followed the original quite closely, its conclusion was however quite a departure. I dare say I liked this ending better because is more positive suggesting it is not necessarily Downhill all the way. I note that the movie did not receive very positive reviews in general with many critics vehemently defending the original film's superiority over this one. Downhill may not be as arty farty as Force Majeure but it still manages to tell the story well in its own humble way. I still think this is worth a watch.