Cannes 2014 Review: ‘Force Majeure’

What I love most about film festivals is finding hidden gems – films you’ve never heard of that turn out to be so good you can’t help but tell anyone who’ll listen all about them. Force Majeure is one of those films.

This sharp, smart character study centres on a Swedish family on holiday at a French ski resort. It’s apparent from the get go that the father, Tomas, is a workaholic – to his wife Ebba’s dismay he can’t leave his phone alone – but after a few hours on the snow all seems right with the world. But when a controlled avalanche goes awry, threatening the family at an outdoor restaurant, Tomas’ ‘fight or flight’ instinct kicks in and instead of protecting the wife and kids, he grabs his phone and runs.

When the snow settles Tomas flatly refuses to admit he abandoned the family, but the consequences of his actions push his marriage to the brink – with his kids, friends and fellow holidaymakers caught in the cross-fire.

This all sounds like quite serious stuff, and it is. But the brilliance of this film is that, just when you least expect, it always makes you laugh – out loud. I’ve never seen a film so skilfully skirt the line between drama and comedy. The laughs lighten the mood and also give the dramatic elements time to breath – you never feel weighed down.

Complementing the dual tone are cut scenes throughout, featuring shots of the ski field, resort and controlled explosions on the mountain set to overly dramatic score, which serve variously to lighten the mood or ramp up the drama. It’s all very clever.

Writer-director Ruben Ostlund should take a lot of credit for finding that balance, but so too should lead actors Johannes Kuhnke and Lisa Loven Kongsli. Tomas and Ebba are completely believable as a couple. You really feel for Ebba and still find Tomas likeable, in spite of his actions. I walked out of the cinema pondering my own actions should such moments ever occur to me – God forbid.

My only criticism, and it’s a small one, is the ending – it doesn’t quite live up to the rest of the film. However the journey is so good, you just don’t care.

I would like to thank everyone at Cannes who said “Go see it!” so I too could discover this gem…and my favourite film of the festival.

9.5/10

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