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Its inciting incident is ultimately a minor event, but the emotions and doubts it unleashes are not.
sensibility, but it has an awkward, American charm all its own.
The setup is largely the same.
At first, its an interesting little sight.
Then, chaos briefly reigns as the rolling, thundering cloud of white approaches and engulfs the entire terrace.
It turns out to be … well, not much.
Just a bit of snow flying through the air.
But Billie is frozen with fear, visibly shaken.
They have it out in front of friends.
They take time off from each other.
Little dryly comic bits are undercut by the characters ongoing apprehension.
At the same time, hes still Will Ferrell: Hes still the cosmic mark.
InDownhill, theres an imbalance right from the start.
Ferrells still doing humiliation comedy, just of a more understated kind.
Louis-Dreyfus, however, is the heart of the picture.
She effectively downplays the potential humor of her scenes, committing instead to her characters trauma.
I throw my arms around my children and I just wait … She is never going to shake that fear.
Billie has an authority born of vulnerability, and we sense her trying to keep it together and failing.
Its a genuinely unnerving little movie.
