Midsommar

Movie, 2019, R

Premise - A group of Americans friends visit a secluded community in Sweden for their Midsommar (midsummer) festival. While most friends are there for anthropological research reasons, Dani tags along with her graduate student boyfriend Christian to save what little is left of their relationship as well as her own well-being after the death of her family members. Upon arrival, they realize they must put their own cultural values aside in light of the unfamiliar rituals to be enacted in their presence.

Review - Why did I want to watch this film so badly. What is wrong with me. I saw the creepy-ass trailer and thought to myself "Oh yes, this is the kind of film I like" and honestly I don't know why.

I'm kidding, mostly, because I do know what attracts me to these kinds of films. A24 in particular is a famous independent film studio known for distributing the wackiest and strangest, yet most artistic of films. I live for creativity and boundary-pushing in the arts. I love films that test us. I love films that are endless food for thought.

It is a weird film though. Like really, really weird. The whole concept of cults can really make us feel eerie. I was talking with a friend while watching this, and I think it has to do with the fact that, as a society, we have particular moral values of right and wrong. They may be somewhat culturally relative, but more or less there are basic human principles we all adhere to. But when you have a small, secluded community that has suffered so much group polarization that their moral values are unrecognizable to the rest of us, anything goes. That sense of security that "Oh, these people may be different from us but at least they would never randomly kill and eat us" just goes out the window. One clear example is the incest taboo, that appears to be common across all cultures. In this cult, however, their "oracle" is purposefully inbred to produce a boy so horrifically disfigured and mentally disabled that his judgment is "unclouded" (whatever that means, but it seems to be an objectively horrific practice).

It's a film that makes you think a lot, even if most of your thoughts are just "WTF?" The main thought going through my head is how much it makes you check your own racism and xenophobia. For the first half of the film at least, the only thing that puts the film in the horror genre is the editing and music. Just watching how the community interacts and insisting that it's "creepy" is an incredibly racist, xenophobic reaction. Different cultures have different practices, and there is nothing sinister about it. To have an adverse reaction to watching people have religious rituals or eat unfamiliar foods is outright offensive, both to people of past societies and current (i.e. Native Americans come to mind). The friend I was watching with noted that the commune was actually "very beautiful" and their rituals could have been seen as "performance art" and I was in complete agreement. So were the characters. Midsommar is a real festival and there's nothing creepy about it! The characters had such an open mind to experiencing a new culture, especially those writing graduate theses. What an anthropologist's dream, to write about a community that has never been written about before! It is not until real consequences start to occur that the characters (and myself) really chuck their cultural relativist mindsets aside and go "that's wrong."

The first instance of this is the attestupa, the real Nordic legend of old people jumping off cliffs. When two old Harga members jump off the cliff, the outsiders scream and protest in shock and anger. "What is wrong with you people??" they scream. But even then, there is some level of cultural relativity we're meant to grapple with. Christian, who plans to write his thesis on the Harga people, says, "We put our old people in homes. The people here might find that disturbing." They just view the end of life differently and would rather not extend life into the suffering that is old age. Also, death is viewed as a positive part of the life cycle.

Of course, the rituals get darker and creepier and less and less justifiable until they are literally sacrificing nine human lives and the cult becomes inexcusable. But why is our main character Dani now a part of it? The other main theme of the film is community and shared empathy. Dani has no emotional connection whatsoever with any of these friends, her boyfriend especially. She is grieving the loss of her own family, and no one truly cares for her. When she cries, she needs to be alone, take a walk, and have some space. Her boyfriend Christian is incredibly selfish, both in his relationship and with his friends (he tried to steal his friend's thesis idea, really??) With the Harga people though, they treat her as though she belongs. They all share emotions. When Dani cries, they all cry. When Maya is moaning and having sex, they're all moaning with her. For someone in as vulnerable of a headspace as Dani, I can see how the solidarity would be appealing. But the shared empathy within this commune is incredibly superficial. They cannot truly feel pain when others feel pain if they can so easily commit cold-blooded murder and sacrifice human lives. I don't believe they truly feel empathy for a second.

The more I'm typing, the more I realize I'm still just on the tip of the iceberg for the number of discussion points this film has to offer, about Dani's sister, Christian, Pelle, and all of the characters. Not to mention the aesthetic and imagery. I'll give my fingers a rest and say that the film is admirable for its originality, and its iconic mark its made on the genre of "folk horror," but a little too weird to be considered enjoyable. (78/100)

Quote - "Nature just knows instinctually how to stay in harmony."

What to watch for - Florence Pugh gave a fabulous breakout performance as Dani, and I really see this movie as her story.

If you liked this movie, I'd recommend The Lobster!

Directed by Ari Aster
Distributed by A24