When it was announced in 2018 that the critically adored Swedish comedy Force Majeure would be remade by Fox, the overwhelming response from anyone who had seen the original was one of quizzical exhaustion. Why just four years after it won the Un Certain Regard jury prize at Cannes do we need to see a more “palatable” English-speaking remix? And is this still where we’re at as an industry and a culture that an arguably perfect film needs to be retouched just because it’s afflicted with subtitles?

The story of both films hinges on a devastating moment of panic and the emotional wreckage it then leaves. Pete (Will Ferrell) and Billie (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) have taken their sons on a family ski trip to the Alps, mistakenly at a location that’s more suited to those wishing to party than parent. During a lunch outside one day, a controlled avalanche nearby thrusts a cloud of snow their way and fearing the worst, Pete grabs his phone and leaves his family. He returns to find them safe but his kneejerk reaction creates a rapidly expanding crack in his relationship.

What remains potent from original to remake is the unease of the premise, the uncomfortable questions it invites into a seemingly sturdy marriage, the sort of mistake that’s so instinctive that it’s impossible to explain away. In the moment, he chose himself, and his phone, over his loved ones and there’s no form of apology that can provide him any cover. But there’s something just a few degrees off about Downhill, a niggling sense that not only was the decision to reheat a recent, universally acclaimed film unnecessary but that the decisions being made by Jesse Armstrong along with writer-director team Nat Faxon and Jim Rash are often rather misjudged.

There’s a lived-in chemistry that’s missing from the pairing and the film’s great many awkward moments between them don’t feel quite as cutting or as uncomfortable as they should. It’s a dark comedy that feels too light.

Downhill doesn’t have the stickiness of the original, it’s a smooth assembly job without an edge, an agreeable enough extended episode of a show you half-watch but nothing more.

– Compilation