4) Force Majeure (Oct. 24)
When the Academy makes their selections for which films to nominated in the foreign language category in early 2015, do not be surprised to hear Sweden’s name being called. Their selection for the Oscars, the tense comedy-thriller Force Majeure, was one of the hottest titles at the recent Toronto film festival. Oh, and it also scored a big prize at Cannes earlier in the year.
Force Majeure is the story of a crumbling marriage between businessman Tomas (Johannes Kuhnke) and his wife Ebba (Lisa Loven Kongsli). On a skiing vacation in the French Alps with their young children, the couple stares down an avalanche on the mountainside. While Ebba stays back to protect her children, Tomas bolts for the door. This pivotal event casts a huge shadow over the conflicted father, as he examines his role as a family man.
Swedish director Ruben Ostlund directed the incendiary drama Play from 2011, and his latest title manages to explore more thought-provoking questions. Force Majeure is also earning raves for its satirical elements, a merciless examination of masculinity that should be quite the conversation starter. We Got This Covered’s Sam Woolf praised the film’s balance of tragedy and comedy, writing in his review that Ostlund “imbues cringe comedy with technical precision and resplendent visuals that usually have no place within the genre.”
A true original with Oscar on its sights, Force Majeure is not to be missed.