THE DECLINE is a new Netflix survival thriller. Nature can be a dangerous opponent – but so can people. A Canadian production from Quebec, so we’re in the French-speaking part of Canada (org. title Jusqu’au déclin). Read our full The Decline review here!
The Decline is a new thriller on Netflix. This movie is all about survival and human nature. Basically, how do you react when you’re pushed past your limits and is fighting to survive.
This is a Canadian production, but from Quebec which is the French-speaking part. So yes, that means this is in French. The original title is Jusqu’au déclin which means something along the lines of “Until the decline”. In other words, it’s about the road to when everything goes wrong.
Continue reading our The Decline review below.
Strangely appropriate during the Coronavirus crisis
While The Decline isn’t about a pandemic, it is about preparing for when disaster strikes. There’s no doubt that many survivalists were ready for something like the Covid-19 pandemic. They were the ones who had already stocked up on water, food, and toilet paper.
That’s why The Decline feels strangely appropriate to watch on Netflix now that we’re living through one of the things they fear in this movie. We are living during a time when one of the things these survivalists fear, has become a reality.
Of course, we’re not in any situation where we need to hide out in the woods to survive. Instead, we’re working together (most of us anyway) to get through it all and carry on. That’s something the survivalists in The Decline never take much into account.
Then again, they’re also the ones who won’t be paying overprice for eggs or toilet paper. So, you know, points for them on that account.
Doomsday Preppers gone wild
The Decline is about a group of survivalists on a retreat in the Canadian wilderness. It does feel a bit like Doomsday Preppers (the National Geographic Channel reality series) gone wild.
At least towards the end and in a very fascinating way to experience as a viewer!
The first third of this new Netflix thriller is all about getting to know the characters. Most of them are very likable and simply want to be ready for whatever disaster might strike the world. They want to protect both themselves and their loved ones. Basically, they want to survive.
After the first third of the story, things take a very dramatic turn. It happens in the most shocking and perfectly simple way. Following this event, the characters are forced to make some lifechanging decisions… and then survive these decisions. As always, the real threat comes from other people!
Also, I just have to mention that one of the coolest characters in The Decline is a woman. She is portrayed by Marie-Evelyne Lessard and I want her character on my team when the zombies come!
Watch The Decline on Netflix now!
The Decline was directed by Patrice Laliberté who also co-wrote the screenplay with Charles Dionne and Nicolas Krief. This is the first time directing a feature film for Patrice Laliberté. In the past, he has directed quite a lot of short films as well as the TV series GAME(R) from 2017.
Screenwriters Charles Dionne and Nicolas Krief both have relatively short IMDb resumes. However, to me, that just means they’re both getting started now. Charles Dionne was a writer on the TV series GAME(R) by Laliberté as well as one of his short films. Nicolas Krief has written and directed four short films in the past.
The Decline is a tight movie with a crisp runtime of 83 minutes. There’s no slow burn (just character introductions) and the story unfolds in some amazing ways. You will be surprised and shocked but not due to classic jumpscares. It’s simply that things evolve in some very realistic, but also extremely intense, ways.
Do not miss this one on Netflix!
The Decline is out on Netflix from March 27, 2020.
Details
Director: Patrice Laliberte
Writers: Patrice Laliberté, Charles Dionne, Nicolas Krief
Stars: Marc Beaupré, Réal Bossé, Marilyn Castonguay, Guillaume Cyr, Isabelle Giroux, Isabelle Giroux, Guillaume Laurin, Marie-Evelyne Lessard, Juliette Maxyme Proulx, Marc Beaupre
Plot
As a way to prepare for disasters, family man Antoine attends a training program on survivalism given by Alain, at his self-sufficient retreat. Anticipating a natural, economical or social breakdown, the group goes through drills meant to prepare them for apocalypses of all types. But the catastrophe waiting for them is nothing like what they anticipated.
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