Written and directed by Ruben Östlund.
The film was a word-of-mouth sensation at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Jury Prize in Un Certain Regard, and was a favorite at the recent Toronto Film Festival, where it received its North American premiere.
FORCE MAJEURE
In Swedish with English subtitles.
“I’m a failure of my own instincts!”-Tomas (Johannes Bah Kuhnke)
A Swedish family of four is on a ski vacation in the French Alps.
It is snowing, a ski resort photographer takes their photos at the top of the mountain, and captures them at their happiest. They enjoyed their first day of skiing and are getting ready for bed. There is a certain methodology to their movements.
It is not until they are at lunch the following day when they hear something that sounds like a fire cracker. They look up and see an avalanche rolling down the hill towards the restaurant. The first instincts of the children are to run in the opposite direction, while, Tomas gazes at the snow, thinking there is nothing to worry about. When he realizes that the avalanche is gaining momentum, he leaves his wife and two kids at the table and runs in the opposite direction without them. The avalanche does stop, and no one gets hurt. Tomas returns to the table, the snowy air clears, and they continue eating lunch in silence.
The kids are despondent, the wife is irritable, and the husband is just happy everyone is okay. But everything is not okay. His wife Ebba (Lisa Loven Kongsli) is upset that he left them behind, and she wants to go skiing alone the following day.
Can Tomas restore his families trust and faith in his ability to provide and protect for them?
Will the avalanche tear their relationship apart?
Opens in New York and Los Angeles on Friday, October 24, 2014 with a national rollout to follow.
One World Cinema