49
Metascore
39 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 70New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriNew York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriIt can’t quite match the power of Östlund’s film, or its bemused, clinical (dare I say Scandinavian?) sensibility, but it has an awkward, American charm all its own.
- 70SlashfilmChris EvangelistaSlashfilmChris EvangelistaWhile the material they’re working with may not be great, it is fun to see Louis-Dreyfus and Ferrell go head-to-head. Maybe they can try doing that again sometime in the future. With a better script.
- 70VarietyOwen GleibermanVarietyOwen GleibermanThe story worked brilliantly before. In Downhill, it works…well enough. The new movie is a teasing trifle with something real on its mind.
- Downhill brings its characters to the brink of somewhere exciting but never commits to a full descent.
- 67The PlaylistJason BaileyThe PlaylistJason BaileyThe value of Downhill comes from merging this story with these two distinct comic personas, and seeing what they do with it (and each other). That’s probably not enough of a reason for it to exist. But it’s not nothing, either.
- 65Vanity FairRichard LawsonVanity FairRichard LawsonDownhill is a clever movie when it could have been profound, had, perhaps, Faxon and Rash been willing—or capable—of digging deeper.
- 58IndieWireKate ErblandIndieWireKate ErblandIt’s hard to ever shake the sense that everyone would be much better off just queuing up Östlund’s film and moving on.
- 55TheWrapAlonso DuraldeTheWrapAlonso DuraldeAnyone who sees this new movie without having watched the original will certainly enjoy the lead performances, but they’ll be getting the frozen-watered-down version of the story.
- 40The GuardianBenjamin LeeThe GuardianBenjamin LeeThere’s a lived-in chemistry that’s missing from the pairing and the film’s great many awkward moments between them don’t feel quite as cutting or as uncomfortable as they should. It’s a dark comedy that feels too light.
- 40The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyThe Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyThis is not only one of those cases in which a U.S. makeover adds nothing to a memorable foreign-language film, it's the doubly dispiriting variation in which the more commercially minded overhaul relentlessly drains everything that was distinctive, edgy and original about the source.