Force Majeure

Force Majeure (Turist) (2014)

Runtime: 120 minutes

Directed by: Ruben Ostlund

Starring: Johannes Kuhnke, Lisa Loven Kongsli, Clara Wettergren, Vincent Wettergren, Kristofer Hivju

From: Several Different European Companies

March is the month of foreign movie watching on Letterboxd; it won't be all I watch this month but it will be the majority of films. I picked this one to watch first as it has high marks. Despite an ending that was iffy to me, I still enjoyed this picture, which does have some awfully purdy scenery. I talk about this Swedish/French/Norwegian/Danish movie below:

As I've done since I first joined (Letterboxd) in 2013, whenever this theme month comes around, I don't officially participate but I still watch random films from across the world. I decided this was the time to finally see this much-ballyhooed movie. Before I talk about it, let me clarify that its English title means, to paraphrase, “an extraordinary event happens and because of it, both parties are free from a contract as they can't fulfill their obligations.”

Man, this was not the easiest movie to watch. A normal family (the parents, and two young children) are on vacation at a ski resort. They are outside eating at a restaurant when a controlled avalanche happens, but it doesn't look all that controlled. The dad decides to leave his children and wife in the dust; the wife is REAL unhappy about it. From there, there is no shortage of awkwardness and simmering anger as a marriage falls apart... although you can assume that the marriage likely had its troubles before then.

I've heard this describe as a comedy and there are some darkly humorous moments. Personally, I say that this is a rather uneasy look at a relationship unraveling; all of us have experienced it in some way during our lives and it's never a fun experience. If seeing how it affects their friends is bad enough, far worse is seeing the impact it has on their children; I thankfully have parents who-while they have their standard arguments-have been married since before I was born. I can only imagine how this plays for those who had parents that divorced as kids.

The ending, I am not quite so sure about or what messages it was trying to say. Even then, I can give this high marks. There are some tremendous scenes and I appreciated how the directing was restrained and thus we got plenty of long scenes and lengthy takes; I appreciate such things when in this modern time most of what we get is cameras swooping around and too quick editing. I know that there are plans for an American remake (because of course) and I know it won't be shot the same and I will presume it will be inferior to this. Anyhow, the cast does a swell job-even the little kids-and I am glad this first movie in a month where I will be watching plenty of foreign films was well worth seeing.