Midsommar

Midsommar came out on July 5, 2019. After a family tragedy grief-stricken Dani Ardor accompanies her boyfriend, Christian, and his friends, Josh and Mark, as they head to Halsingland, Sweden to attend the midsummer festival at their mutual friend, Pelle’s, home village with people known as Hargas. What comes next is nine days of Pagan rituals, psychedelic trips, and many what’s going on?

Florence Pugh was excellent as the kind, smart, and quiet, Dani Ardor. As a psychology student, Dani knows how to diagnose other’s problems, but she neglects her own. The story begins when her bipolar sister, Terri, takes her own life and their parents in a murder-suicide act. This puts Dani in a dark place so when Christian invites her on the trip, even though she knows she’s unwanted, she accompanies the group as she has no one else to turn to for emotional support. Her awkward conversations with everyone showed her uncomfortable feelings and she couldn’t help but cry whenever she was alone.

Jack Reynor put on a great performance as the emotionally distant, passive, and naïve, Christian Hughes. In the beginning his plans to break up with Dani were put on hold as he realized she had PTSD. Instead of listening, Christian only stayed with her either because he didn’t want to be that jerk to dump someone after they experience loss, or he was afraid she would become unstable and he didn’t want to be responsible for it. He didn’t even act sorry for her and showed no sensitivity for Terri having bipolar disorder saying she was “dramatic” and other hurtful things. In my opinion Christian was a hypocrite. He may have been there physically, but it was clear he was a million miles away. He was not honest.

Fans of The Good Place will recognize Chidi…..I mean William Jackson Harper as the academic and brainiac Josh. As an anthropology student his interest in the midsummer festivals is the subject to his thesis paper. Josh is smart and nice, and he cares about his friends, but he is also very nosy. He is not suspicious about the strange things that are happening because he is too invested into the culture, taking multiple pictures, recording notes, and asking many questions. His friendship with Christian and Mark were surprising as they could not be more different. He told them off, corrected them, and did not tolerate bad behavior. I could see him as being friends with Dani more because they were similar people and he was nice to her. However, Josh also didn’t show her the comfort she needed mainly by removing himself when things got personal.

Will Poulter was great at playing the droll Mark. He had only intentions to have a good time, but his behavior was unacceptable. He was whiny, sarcastic, insulting, rude, and an overall jerk. As Josh’s opposite, he was the fool who showed disrespect to the community while making comments that were inappropriate despite receiving kindness from the Harga village. His frenemy relationship with Dani was subtle and even though he was not mean TO her he made it LOUD and clear he didn’t want her to join them. In the beginning he reminded Christian that he wanted to end things with Dani for “a year now” and says she needs a therapist while Christian needs a hook up. Whether his behavior generated from excessive confidence or insecurities I would say he represents everything not to be because bottom line, he gets under your skin. Don’t be a Mark.

As I mentioned before they are going to the home of a friend and that friend is Vilhelm Blomgren as the kind spoken Pelle. The festival the group experiences happens once every 90 years and Pelle just wants to share it with them. He sees Dani’s struggle and chooses to stay by her side. He is the only one who shows her emotional support and states he understands her pain as he lost his parents as well and the village helped him and should help her too. Pelle deserves applause for helping Josh with his thesis paper, putting up with Mark’s crude behavior, and trying to patch things up between Dani and Christian. His nurturing behavior seems to have no limits and he appreciates the home he has while saying family is everything.

Two important minor characters are Eldora Torchia and Archie Madekwe as engaged, English couple Connie and Simon, respectively. We don’t know much about them except that they work on the same farm with their Harga friend and Pelle’s brother, Ulf, who also invited them. They are nice, curious, talkative, and loving. They seemed to represent what Dani and Christian used to be like in the beginning of their relationship or what they both could have if they communicated their feelings better. Pay attention to them. Trust me.

Trouble approaches with red hair as Isabelle Grill emerges as Pelle’s sister, Maja. Immediately smitten with Chritian, Maja’s intentions are obvious from the start, she wants him. Instead of a romantic rival, Maja takes on the role of the temptress. She is young, beautiful, innocent, and available. Christian is given the choice to stay with Dani or give into Maja’s advances. This displays his fears of being trapped in something he cannot get out of. Maja isn’t given much of a personality. She’s been conditioned since birth to behave a certain way. The hair fixing and intense deep breathing she takes while looking in the mirror show her perfectionist side. In a way you must sympathize with her, and you fear she has no identity.

Finally, as the leader, Gunnel Fred is the eccentric Siv. Siv is nurturing and hospitable. She makes it her duty to look after the other Hargas and keep them safe and in line. She presents herself as very motherly and serves as a good hostess with her demeanor, but her voice presents itself as a form of dictator. She cares about balance in life and refuses anything out of place. Stay on her good side.

Although the film takes place in Sweden it was filmed in Budapest, Hungary. One important fact is that in the summertime days are longer and in parts of Europe the sun can still be shining at 9:00pm. Ari Aster directed a visually pleasing film that has you examine the relationships in your life and determine which ones are worth saving. He refers to this film as a breakup movie that will scare you in broad daylight. Just because it is about 72 degrees and sunny doesn’t mean bad things won’t happen. Aster allowed the Swedish members of the cast to react as they would to a real midsummer festival and discussed all the folklore beliefs that inspired the story. The cast noted of the blazing heat and even a few mean wasps that were on set. Reynor even confessed how silent everyone was for ten minutes while the credits rolled during an attended screening. The Harga people are presented as dressed all in white with flowers around them and almost constant smiles on their faces. They have sacred books and detailed tapestries with the most fantastic and detailed artwork on it. Other artwork is displayed throughout the film with subtle hints of foreshadow.

Some camera techniques that displayed themselves in the beginning were extreme close ups to faces or seeing someone in a mirror. This displayed how disconnected Dani felt to everyone she was talking to. She may have acted calm, but it only showed how lonely and angry she was. Also, the dark rooms showed the sad atmosphere while sunny Sweden represented togetherness and happiness. What surprised me was how relatable this film was. Since the characters are in college, they are thinking about what they’re lives will be like after they graduate. However, they are still young. Just because you turn twenty does not mean you are all grown up. Career driven Josh puts in to light the serious side of growing up and making your own life while Mark carelessly lives in the moment. Since I have experience loss in my family myself, I can relate to Dani’s situation. Grief is a hard thing to go through. You feel sad, mad, or sometimes you want to feel nothing at all. You are in a lot of pain but what you should not do is keep everything bottle up. Find someone to talk to and know it’s okay to cry. You’ll be okay. Don’t let the sunshine and flowers fool you. This film is rated R for language, nudity, grotesque imagery, and heavy thematic material that may be triggering to some audience members. Take caution as this film is unsettling but if you’re up for it go ahead and watch Midsommar.