Film Review: Midsommar

A deeply unsettling horror film with more layers than meets the eye.

About the Film

Title: Midsommar

Director: Ari Aster

MPAA Rating: R (disturbing ritualistic violence and grisly images, strong sexual content, graphic nudity, drug use and language)

The Premise

Source: A24 Films

“Dani and Christian are a young American couple with a relationship on the brink of falling apart. But after a family tragedy keeps them together, a grieving Dani invites herself to join Christian and his friends on a trip to a once-in-a-lifetime midsummer festival in a remote Swedish village. What begins as a carefree summer holiday in a land of eternal sunlight takes a sinister turn when the insular villagers invite their guests to partake in festivities that render the pastoral paradise increasingly unnerving and viscerally disturbing.”

My Thoughts

I have constantly heard only good things about Ari Aster’s films, so when I had a free evening I decided to finally watch Midsommar.

The Aesthetics of Midsommar

One of the most striking things about Midsommar is how it steps out of the normal horror film color palette and mood. The entire movie, excluding the beginning, has a bright and sunny feel, which makes the dread it invokes more intriguing.

The cinematography was very good, and there are many hidden details and easter eggs in the visuals. I also liked the visual distortions they incorporated when the characters were on psychedelics.

The Horror of Midsommar

I am a sucker for a good cult story, and this one didn’t disappoint. At the beginning, I was underwhelmed, thinking that the cult truly wasn’t that scary or harmful. However, the way the story is told lulls you almost into a false sense of security.

Like the characters, the audience finds themselves trying to excuse the various actions of the cult as just “tradition” or “a different culture”, falling into the trap of relative morality. Since we’re introduced to the cult from a character, Pelle, who was established as trustworthy, sympathetic, and perhaps a better love interest for Dani than Christian is, there is some motivation to try to look past the red flags.

Nevertheless, as the characters’ stay lengthens, the dramatic irony increases and the sense of dread is almost palpable. While the movie was very long, I felt that it was suspenseful the entire time, because I just had this feeling of slowly watching a trainwreck in slow motion.

The fear reaches a fever pitch with the ending scene, which is one of the most well-done endings I’ve seen to a movie and gave me chills. I won’t go into it in this review, which is spoiler-free, but I honestly couldn’t sleep afterwards.

The Themes of Midsommar

Ultimately I think that Midsommar is a story about the fear of losing people and the vulnerability that comes with loss. Dani and Christian’s relationship is falling apart from the very beginning of the film, and the trip only puts more strain on them. Dani has already gone through immense loss, and the fear she has about losing Christian too if he breaks up with her is always present in the background of all of her choices throughout.

Dani is preyed upon by the cult because of her fragile mental state. She just lost her whole family and is in a completely foreign environment with her boyfriend and his friends, who frankly aren’t a very good support system. This leaves her completely open to the influences of Pelle and the other members, making the progression of the storyline and her slow breakdown make a lot of narrative sense.

Have you watched Midsommar? If so, what did you think of it? Feel free to leave a comment below.

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