A family vacationing in the French Alps is confronted with a devastating avalanche.
A Swedish family travels to the French Alps to enjoy a few days of skiing. The sun is shining and the slopes are spectacular but, during a lunch at a mountainside restaurant, an avalanche turns everything upside down. With diners fleeing in all directions, mother Ebba calls for her husband Tomas as she tries to protect their children. Tomas, meanwhile, is running for his life... The anticipated disaster failed to occur, and yet the family's world has been shaken to its core, a question mark hanging over their father in particular. Tomas and Ebba's marriage now hangs in the balance as Tomas struggles desperately to reclaim his role as family patriarch.—Cannes Film Festival
Outwardly, married Swedish couple Tomas and Ebba and their two adolescent offspring Vera and Harry could be the poster children for the western upper middle class and the modern nuclear family of their cultural and social standing. Currently at a French ski resort on a five day vacation largely as a respite for Tomas from work so that he can have that proper work/family balance, they are good looking, politely agree to the request from the resort staff photographer to pose for pictures, ski together, give each other their requisite alone time when they can indulge themselves with their plethora of electronic toys (although Tomas is supposed to stay off the "work" phone), keep proper hygiene diligently brushing their teeth each using their own electric toothbrush, and even cuddle together as a family on the large king sized bed in their hotel suite dozing after a long day on the slopes. Because of what they strive for as a family, Ebba just doesn't understand a woman she meets at the resort named Charlotte, who is there without her children as a respite of her own away from them, and who has a blissfully open marriage. However, the crack in Tomas and Ebba's family veneer starts to show at lunch on day two. While they dine on the outdoor patio of one of the mountaintop restaurants, an incident external to them leads to gut reactions by them all which shows Ebba how little a priority Tomas places on her and the children compared to himself and his material possessions on that gut level. While Tomas doesn't want to admit what Ebba believes based on that incident, Ebba conversely doesn't want it to affect how she feels to tear off that perfect family veneer completely, which may be difficult for her not to do also on that gut level. All the children know is that there is tension between their parents which could lead to divorce. Added into the discussion are their similarly aged divorced friend Mats and his much younger, twenty year old girlfriend, Fanni, who arrive at the resort on day three and whose thoughts on the matter are based largely on gender and generation. How they all come out the other end is partly affected by their encounter with a bus driver.—Huggo
On the second day of a carefree vacation at a luxurious ski resort in the snow-capped French Alps, the Swedish family of the busy father, Tomas; his devoted wife, Ebba, and their two kids, Vera and Harry, come face-to-face with a skier's worst fear: a sudden and mighty avalanche. As the towering tsunami of white terror rapidly closes in an outdoor restaurant and its blissful clientele, an instinctual, yet unforgivable act of self-preservation will pave the way for a swift and irremediable disenchantment. Now, it's Tomas who is under the spotlight, as, more and more, trust--the very essence of their well-organised life--silently crumbles to dust. Will Tomas ever bounce back?—Nick Riganas
A Swedish businessman named Tomas (Johannes Bah Kuhnke), his Norwegian wife Ebba (Lisa Loven Kongsli), their young daughter Vera (Clara Wettergren), and their preschooler son Harry (Vincent Wettergren) stay at a luxury resort in the French Alps. The first day they hit the slopes and fall asleep exhausted.On their second day, they see a controlled avalanche as they are having lunch outdoors on the deck of a restaurant. The powder cloud of the avalanche gives the appearance that the snow is rising and will wipe out everyone on the deck. Tomas, who is filming the avalanche on his phone, panics and runs as the deck quickly empties of patrons, leaving Ebba with their children encased in a dense fog. Patrons return to their tables as the fog dissipates, and no one is hurt.
That evening, they eat dinner with one of Ebba's friends, who has picked up an American man (Brady Corbet) for the evening. Ebba tells the story of the avalanche in English, but Tomas insists he did not run away from the table, and in Swedish adds that one cannot run in ski boots. They argue in front of their embarrassed guests. Ebba is angry that he would not admit he ran away from the avalanche, abandoning them. He is clearly ashamed and says he does not agree with "her version", further infuriating Ebba.
Ebba decides she would like a day of skiing by herself. She has drinks with her friend whom they had dinner with the night before, as the woman says goodbye to another man. Ebba confronts her friend about her adultery, asking her if she loves her husband and children. Her friend says that she is not into building her entire self-esteem around the existence of her husband her and kids and that she is fine with having an open relationship with her husband, and that she is happy if he finds a woman to have great sex with, as he does with her. Ebba becomes more insistent, and the friend advises them not to argue, and leaves.Meanwhile, at the ski slopes, Harry yells at Tomas and says that he is afraid that he and Ebba might get a divorce.
Mats (Kristofer Hivju), one of Tomas's old friends, joins them at the resort with his young girlfriend, Fanny (Fanni Metelius). They join Tomas and Ebba for dinner in their suite. After dinner and much wine, Ebba interrupts the conversation to recount the story of the avalanche, to the silent horror of Mats and Fanny.Tomas curls up with Harry to play a video game and listens to Mats who insists that we are not ourselves in emergencies and that very few people actually are heroes in such situations, naming the Estonia disaster as an example. Ebba says Tomas won't admit what he did.Tomas returns and again insists he has a different perspective and that he disagrees with Ebba's version of events. So, Ebba fetches Tomas's phone and has the four of them watch the video of the incident. Tomas reluctantly agrees the footage shows someone running but is silent when Mats speculates that Tomas was running away so that he could come back and dig out his family later.As Fanny and Mats leave, Fanny suggests that she would expect Mats to react in the same way as Tomas. Fanny says that this is a generational gap and that men from the current generation are much more connected to their families as opposed to men born in the 1970s and the 1980s.Mats is offended, and after arguing all night their relationship is changed for the rest of the trip.
Tomas and Mats ride the ski lift in silence. They ski down fresh powder. Mats suggests Tomas try primal screaming, and Tomas does, screaming swear words into the Alps. Tomas later confesses to Ebba that he hates himself, his cowardice, his cheating in games with his kids, and his unfaithfulness. He weeps as his children inside the huddle cry together, hearing their parents argue.
On their final day, the family ascends on the ski lift silently. Ebba is concerned about the thick fog. Tomas says he will go first, then children, then she can follow. Ebba gets lost in the fog, and Tomas briefly leaves the children alone to rescue her, returning carrying her shortly after. He sets her down, grinning.
As the family and their friends leave the resort by coach down the winding mountain road, Ebba decides the driver is incompetent and, in a state of fear, demands to be let off and flees the bus. Panic ensues, and Mats takes charge, insisting women and children get off first.
Eventually, all exit the bus except for Ebba's friend, and the group descends the road on foot. Mats and Fanny are walking apart. Ebba asks Mats to carry Vera. A stranger offers Tomas a cigarette, and initially Tomas declines, but then accepts. Harry asks his father if he smokes - he has not during the entire vacation - and Tomas replies that he does.
