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I Can't Get Over Midsommar

Every time! I'm taken out by the May Queen scene!

By Delise FantomePublished 3 years ago 10 min read
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Countless times I've thought about writing a review for Midsommar since I first watched it, and countless times I talked myself out of it because . . . well, because either I had the thought at an inconvenient time or I figured I would be way too late to the party.

But I'm sitting here watching Dani go partially out of her mind in a line dance, and I don't really want to write a review so much as I want to write out all the times I've seen a different side to this movie. Some things don't need intense analysis, they just need a willing ear and some interest.

Reflections

**Warning! This article is filled with spoilers if you haven't seen the movie!**

The first time I saw this movie, it was on a warm Tuesday night when Cinemark wasn't being territorial over their $5 ticket deals. I'd bought a frozen daquiri at the movie bar, and watched in silent awe as this movie quietly, unobtrusively marked me with thin, stinging cuts. They were, for all but one instance, emotional (damn Florence Pugh and her heartbreaking face). Then I, needing very badly to pee after downing that daquiri, wobbled my way out of the theatre and decided that it was best I run in order to not miss much of the movie. I remember quite clearly that I was holding on to the hand rail for guidance, and balance, so when I was rushing down and my hand was sliding along the cold metal I was not at all prepared to feel something slide through the skin of my thumb. Wincing, I lifted my hand up but didn't stop and instead just hurried to the bathroom to take note of what happened. Under the fluorescent lights of the bathroom I determined my thumb wouldn't need stitches, but it pulsed unpleasantly and the blood rose to the surface a little too easily. As I wrapped my thumb in tissue paper I mused that the movie must be good if it extracted a blood sacrifice.

The second time, I recoiled upons seeing the flesh suit they made out of Mark. I remembered that I had left the theatre at that point, and wondered at the insanity. I liked Pelle more for Dani, and was more easily able to notice how absolutely creepy the "love story" tapestry was. The whole thing was a saga of manipulation, albeit via magic, and rape. I felt more sympathy for Christian that time around, than on the first watch. He may not have been the best boyfriend, but he didn't deserve to be raped or to be killed like that. I really didn't like Mark, and I was heavily disappointed in Josh for deliberately disobeying the rules of a culture he seemed to have such great respect for in the beginning. Then again, intense interest and curiosity are certainly not equivalent to respect.

I found myself oddly emotional watching the communal crying scene after Dani sees Christian writhing with Maja. Again, it's the way watching Florence Pugh cry so hysterically actually makes me uncomfortable alongside my sympathetic tear ducts that do not seem to understand that, no, I don't want to cry along with her actually but thanks. There was a raw beauty in the scene though. Everything is shared amongst the Hårga, even their emotions. They share happiness, they share sorrow, because when the load is shared equally amongst a community then no weight is too heavy to bare. And it felt so important, seeing that. Seeing how the community moved around her and shared in her grief . . . it was what Dani truly needed all along. Not the reluctant overtures of her shit boyfriend, not the uncomfortable silence of his friends, but she needed people who could support her and understand that the best thing to do for her was to come together for her. Yet, that same scene would later disturb me because that same community that come together around her . . . planned the whole thing that set her off? I mean, creating the situation that causes her to breakdown, and then flocking to her with sympathy and care is incredibly manipulative.

On my third watch, I knew that there was a Director's cut I wasn't getting on Prime, and was mostly focused on the symbolism of the plants in the movie. All the plants in Dani's apartment, and all the ways plants affected her during her herbal trips, leading up to the blooming of the final event of Midsommar. All the times she freaked out when she saw the plants "melding" to her body, which I think was her being afraid of changing maybe? Or was she afraid of being stuck in one place, afraid to stop moving otherwise the grief rooted in her would change her completely and sprout something she wasn't sure she could live with? I saw the way she looked at the plants with new eyes after sitting at the helm of the May Queen, and how bright the foliage was as it moved to keep her close.

By Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

"Do you feel held by him?" Pelle had asked her, in regards to Christian. I wonder if the plants surrounding her, holding her, was when she first thought about letting go. I was critical of both Dani and Christian for being unable to make a clean ending of things, and wondered at how she could choose his death. Still, I was so sad for Dani though . . . she was just so utterly terrified of being alone that she would quickly assume a smaller frame and meek disposition to stop Christian from leaving her. She was afraid to argue with him, afraid to change anything that could inconvenience him, like the mushrooms incident.

I . . . I truly can't fathom such a depth of loneliness.

Of course I accounted for the fact that with her entire family gone she would be clinging on to any sort of connection but . . . that's where my resentment for Christian grew. He was so . . . just . . . emotionally unavailable for her. Even when he tried it felt so lackluster and like he was weakly performing an obligation as opposed to a genuine act of caring. I noticed every time he only gave Dani the bare minimum to check in on her when she was in emotional turmoil, and watched as she began to resent what she had previously happily accepted- which I loved for her. Still totally harsh he died like he did.

I severely disliked Mark even more so this time, and realized that his disrespect of the Hårga culture started even earlier than the desecration of the ancient tree. He was only ever interested in having the stereotypical college boy European trip filled with careless fun and girls. Though I supposed Pelle knew that, and knew he would be easy to lead off for a special Hårga tradition. I wasn't too upset to see him go honestly, not when I was so fond of Dani and hated whoever was uncaring towards her. Josh found more of my sympathy this time, as I understood how hurt and understandably frustrated he was by Christian and his decision to do a thesis in Hårga like Josh. I still figured he got what he deserved when he snuck around to get the sacred text (for which I cannot find a correct spelling of). I realized that I could hear Connie scream before she died, which was . . . kind of wild.

On the fourth watch, I had seen a tweet saying that the same conversation Pelle had with Dani, that I had quoted above, was one reminiscent of a recruitment technique for cultists. And I was . . . struck, somehow? I mean yes, I had fully realized that the commune was full of some really off people and that it was a cult, but I hadn't realized Pelle could have been emotionally manipulating Dani in an attempt to add her to the group. Was he planning to have her for himself? So I found Pelle quite creepy all throughout. I wondered at how life would go on for all of them afterwards. I thought about the first "event" when the elders completed the circle. I had, for the first couple of watches, believed that the fatal ceremony was only one performed during the Midsommar festival. I am more horrified now realizing that, no, they do that every damn year for whoever turns 72. Is it always exactly like that? With at least one of them gasping in pain before getting their heads smashed like watermelons? Seriously, Aster, what the fuck.

It's the fifth watch now, and I'm just . . . Florence Pugh has one of the cutest noses I've ever seen. Like, what the hell. Stop it. Watching this five times has not gotten me any more inured to her hellishly anguished sobbing. It gets too emotionally taxing to have my chest tighten when she really starts almost choking on tears, so that's one hell of a no go for Don't Worry Darling, I expect.

So Many Questions . . .

I wonder what ever happened to Dani's friend she was talking to on the phone. The one who was honestly the most sensible character in the whole damn movie. She seemed like a very good friend, was she concerned for Dani going on the trip with a man she didn't think good enough for her friend? Did Dani even tell her? If Dani never came home from Hårga, was she worried? Did she call authorities?

Was Dani even allowed to go back home after all that she saw?

What about Maja? If Dani stayed at the compound wouldn't it be super awkward to live with the girl who seduced/raped your ex-boyfriend and was carrying his child? Assuming she managed to get pregnant, hell if I know whether they have some weird herbal remedy to ensure 100% success. I doubt anyone would bother telling Dani that they drugged Christian, and I don't know that Dani would truly have cared by that point.

What was the meaning behind the various methods of ritual sacrifice used on the others? Simon and his flowered corpse might have been something about rebirth . . . but Connie? Mark? Why was Christian dressed in the husk of a bear and then burned to death? Why did the Elders give the village sacrifices that weakass sap "numbing agent" and lie about it keeping them from feeling pain? Seemed pretty pointless to me, to lie to them before they died.

So, like, it's pretty easy to realize that this whole community is a straight up cult right. It's made abundantly clear by the end of the movie; I just wonder if they realize it too? Like, they must realize what they do is definitely not right when they had their members on "pilgrimage" bring back sacrifices. Or at least I think so? No one truly seems to show guilt or thinks to question the rituals that occur so . . . . I mean what is the value of human life to the people? Does it not upset them even a little to interfere so heavily in the cycle they proudly live in, by cutting short the lives of their guests?

Also, thinking back to that embarrassing question Christian asked about community relationships . . . did they ensure Dani would stay to bring in a "fresh bloodline"?Is Peli a calculating figure without a moral code then, or does he truly believe he's helping Dani find a family?

A lot of these questions will probably never be answered and that's fine I guess. I just wonder sometimes. The answers I can come up with vary upon each rewatch of Midsommar, which I believe is another indicator of it being a truly amazing movie.

What were your favorite bits about the movie? What symbolism did you pick out that I haven't seen yet? I'd love to know!

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About the Creator

Delise Fantome

I write about Halloween, music, movies, and more! Boba tea and cheesecake are my fuel. Let's talk about our favorite haunts and movies on Twitter @ThrillandFear

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