Midsommar (2019) ***1/2

As with Ari Aster's debut Hereditary (2018) (my review here) I liked his follow-up Midsommar (2019) a lot overall, but I still felt myself wanting something more. Read on for my thoughts about this story of college kids visiting Sweden gone amuck.

It's hard to write about Midsommar without bringing up The Wicker Man (1973) because it is the pagan cult horror film and there are plenty of similarities between the two films. But I've never been able to fully embrace The Wicker Man—I find a lot of it goofy, not scary, and even a little boring. Speaking of, while I was never bored by Midsommar, and while I do like a good film with a languid pace, one that builds and builds, I did think this film could have had the same impact at 2 hours as it does with its 2 1/2 hour running time.

I will say, at times it felt as if I was watching something special, even grand, but that feeling was always undercut by the underdeveloped/stereotypical/uninteresting characters to the point that it sometimes just felt like a dressed up, less specifically brutal Hostel (2005). I am much more affected when terrible things happen to characters I connect with emotionally in films, rather than ones that feel like fodder.

Florence Pugh as Dani, our "heroine," who has recently suffered the loss of her parents and sister, is good—clearly the highlight of the film from an acting and character standpoint, but there was nothing revelatory in her performance. Neither did the film offer any surprises for this seasoned horror movie watcher but that's not to say that it wasn't satisfying as a whole. My friend Amy mentioned that parts of the film reminded her of Hannibal (2013–2015), and I'd have to agree, except that I don't think Midsommar has near the same level of artistry involved. Still there are undoubtedly some striking shots in the film.

Is it wrong or weird of me to say that I found a lot of the cultural traditions presented in the film to be more beautiful than horrific? Obviously I'm not condoning murder but to me it seems as if there is clearly a reverence for the community being displayed. I got the impression that this was less a cautionary tale than it was a celebration of Dani finding a new family, of being "held" as one character puts it, even if it is by a cult. While many may feel there is a feminist angle to the film, I saw it as less about female empowerment than as a person finding a sense of belonging and a place populated by people who can share and channel her pain.