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MIDSOMMAR - First Trailer - from director Ari Aster (Hereditary)
- Thread starter ParanoidRED
- Start date
Not sold out, but postponed from selling.
Just got home from seeing it finally
Hereditary is more my style of movie but I dug it a lot. Opening was dark as hell and I don't think anything else it throws at you really comes close
Lead girl reminded me so much of Ronda Rousey lol
Hereditary is more my style of movie but I dug it a lot. Opening was dark as hell and I don't think anything else it throws at you really comes close
Lead girl reminded me so much of Ronda Rousey lol
So I watched it with friends and none of them agree with me on this. So I'm asking you if anyone felt similar.
As if it was a thing on a previous version of the script, now scrapped, but the scene is still directed/edited in the same way to get there.
Did anyone felt that the rape of the guy was directed to imply that incest was being done?
Not that there was actual incest, but that a combination of previous dialogue with cuts to the inbred man during this new conception and a shot where you only see their hair during the sex that appears to match color closely as if they were related.
Since it seemed like too big of a ceremony for just acquiring a pregnancy, I for at least a second was convinced that they were making a new inbred priest. But that is too convoluted to make any sense, so I'm at least only saying that there are element to make you you think it, rather than it is actually a thing.
Not that there was actual incest, but that a combination of previous dialogue with cuts to the inbred man during this new conception and a shot where you only see their hair during the sex that appears to match color closely as if they were related.
Since it seemed like too big of a ceremony for just acquiring a pregnancy, I for at least a second was convinced that they were making a new inbred priest. But that is too convoluted to make any sense, so I'm at least only saying that there are element to make you you think it, rather than it is actually a thing.
As if it was a thing on a previous version of the script, now scrapped, but the scene is still directed/edited in the same way to get there.
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I think you're on to something: one of the elders makes the point that the bloodlines are very well controlled or pure (can't remember the exact phrasing) and there are times when Christian appears to have very red hair.
(That Christian's hair colour looks dyed rather than natural is probably not intentional, however.)
I had this. Also more than half the audiance came in after the film had started.
Loved the film. It wasn't as traumatising as Hereditary but I liked it a little more. Loved the balance of funny and disturbing. The aesthetics and cinematography were beautiful.
I'm a sucker for folk horror tho.
it had sort of had a happy ending!
The Witch is still my recentish favourite horror movies.. does anyone know about when The Lighthouse will be released(uk anyway)?.. can't seem to find out
I'd probably recommend Midsommar to someone who has yet to watch Hereditary as I think it would come off better without the raised expectations.
The movie didn't feel as long as the actual runtime, which is a plus, but I kept waiting for the movie to hit "next level holy shit" moment/s yet they never came.
Midsommar has a steady, consistent progression but never elevates above and beyond. There's a bunch of weird shit and some, for a horror movie, mild fucked up shit. But no holy shits.
The movie didn't feel as long as the actual runtime, which is a plus, but I kept waiting for the movie to hit "next level holy shit" moment/s yet they never came.
Midsommar has a steady, consistent progression but never elevates above and beyond. There's a bunch of weird shit and some, for a horror movie, mild fucked up shit. But no holy shits.
Accurate take. Midsommar never gets next level crazy like Hereditary did toward the end.
I have seen Hereditary three times. The first time I really disliked it, mostly cause it wasn't the horror I expected, and the crowd. It slightly grew on me on a rewatch, but I still don't really like it. But there are aspects in it that I love. Like the grief and drama around the family in the house, the girl and what everyone goes through. I didn't like the ending much.
With Midsommar I really loved it coming out the theatre. And I wouldn't mind if it had been longer, but from reading a few pages of this thread I'm probably in the minority wanting more.
Despite what some have felt, I thought her grief of losing her family really was with her throughout the whole movie, so those introductory 15 minutes were incredibly important to setting up this whole ordeal.
Best movie of 2019 so far for me.
With Midsommar I really loved it coming out the theatre. And I wouldn't mind if it had been longer, but from reading a few pages of this thread I'm probably in the minority wanting more.
Despite what some have felt, I thought her grief of losing her family really was with her throughout the whole movie, so those introductory 15 minutes were incredibly important to setting up this whole ordeal.
Best movie of 2019 so far for me.
I had the same experience with Hereditary. So this time I was at a showing with only 5 other people. Great experience.
I really enjoyed this film in terms of its interior logic and storytelling. There's a lot of really subtle pieces of foreshadowing and/or bits of world and character building that don't become obvious until reflection. I'm really interested to re-watch it knowing what happens because I'm positive I missed quite a bit.
I thought the dialogue and a lot of the interactions (especially with characters being introduced to each other) felt very real and naturally paced. The drug effects felt very appropriate and accurate to a lot of my own experiences. Lots of very interesting and true-to-life touches with the small community/commune aspect and the kinds of characters/people you interact with in those settings.
Really liked the portrayal of a relationship past it's sell-by-date between Christian and Dani and how Christian is on the one-hand, a complete shitheel to her, but on the other is subjected to some truly horrific things completely out of his control.
I do wish it had gotten a little more...dark? Weird? Just kind of felt like the film was edging on something above-and-beyond shocking that never really happened. Florence Pugh was amazing.
I thought the dialogue and a lot of the interactions (especially with characters being introduced to each other) felt very real and naturally paced. The drug effects felt very appropriate and accurate to a lot of my own experiences. Lots of very interesting and true-to-life touches with the small community/commune aspect and the kinds of characters/people you interact with in those settings.
Really liked the portrayal of a relationship past it's sell-by-date between Christian and Dani and how Christian is on the one-hand, a complete shitheel to her, but on the other is subjected to some truly horrific things completely out of his control.
I do wish it had gotten a little more...dark? Weird? Just kind of felt like the film was edging on something above-and-beyond shocking that never really happened. Florence Pugh was amazing.
I really wanted to like this and Hereditary, but there's something about these movies that doesn't land with me at all. They look great and they have some fantastic performances, but I keep getting the sense that I'm trying to pull meaning out of movies that don't really have much going on. I mean, sure, there's a ton of work with the design, but I feel like both films are kind of incoherent, and I'm getting the sense that I watched either
, but less satisfying, and in this case
, but longer.
The movies bring up some interesting themes, but I feel like the leads barely have any actual agency and there's never any really satisfying resolution. In Midsommer,
That being said, it's rare that I get this frustrated by movies, so I feel like there's something here that I just can't connect to, and I want to be as into these movies as everyone else that I know!
Rosemary's Baby (or hell, even Paranormal Activity 3)
The Wicker Man
The movies bring up some interesting themes, but I feel like the leads barely have any actual agency and there's never any really satisfying resolution. In Midsommer,
it's frustrating to me on a couple of levels. a) that she works through the trauma and grief of her sister's murder/suicide by joining a cult that advocates and makes her complicit in murder/suicide, and b) that she's rid of the toxic relationships in her life in a manner that largely robs her of her agency, and by a group of murderous zealots.
I think you're meant to feel frustrated, or conflicted, or in other words that the ending is "dark" or "twisted" ... the reason the cult appeals to Dani is not because it's a community devoid of violence, but rather that their response to violence and death is to openly grieve, to share each other's feelings, almost literally. Compare the group display of emotion at the end to the scene of Dani wailing into Christian's lap in the opening, while he sits there disconnected and cold. Giving Dani more agency might dilute the point, which is that despite all the horrific things they do, the cult offers Dani the one thing she desperately needs in her life.
That the cult largely orchestrated Dani's continued grief suggests to me that she's still in a thoroughly dishonest "relationship" and is largely in the same place that she started the movie in; leaning on performative acts of caring for validation. I guess it's interesting that the only legitimate positive influence that she had throughout the movie was the faceless friend she spoke with on the phone, whose advice she largely ignored. I don't know; I feel like none of the characters in either Ari Aster movie get to really change or grow, and maybe that's the point, but it just leaves me wondering why we spent so much time building towards nothing.
Ari Aster said in a Q&A the other day that there's definitely a 4 hour cut in existence, but that his "director's cut" will probably be around 3 hours.
Not awesome for a film that already dragged but I think it'll appeal to the people who were really into the movie and it sort of does fit with the tone/pace of the movie in a way.
Hereditary is the better film but Midsommar was definitely the better theatrical experience. I did feel like the movie could have been shorter, it definitely dragged a little.
I watched Hereditary after Midsommar and in comparison they felt like closer experiences in quality (really good markers in their genre while needing either better fleshed out characters or snipping regarding empty time) than I'd thought given the responses in the thread. Both solid, but lacking in effective payoffs in certain places. Midsommar is too long so is a solid interpersonal turmoil (with gore) swimming within so much time that by the time the film ends the fierce chop ends with a bit of a wet slap. Hereditary is tighter, but failed to engage me much in the early-to-middle (ironically where some of Midsommar's best content is) and has a climactic finale that made me wish I cared more for the characters involved in the devious set-up at all.
Both respective lead actresses, Toni Colette (Hereditary) and Florence Pugh (Midsommar) executed their roles great along with a decent, even if not great, supporting cast. They really are very neck-and-neck for me given the focus on turning interpersonal drama into literal horror in both films. If I was getting paid a million dollars, I'd say I preferred Midsommar. Even though it dragged, the drug trips, bright color philosophy, gruesome deaths and consistently flawed main character left a stronger impression on me than Hereditary.
I'll certainly be on the lookout for the Director's Cut for Midsommer, but would like to see Ari do something very different with whatever film they direct next.
Both respective lead actresses, Toni Colette (Hereditary) and Florence Pugh (Midsommar) executed their roles great along with a decent, even if not great, supporting cast. They really are very neck-and-neck for me given the focus on turning interpersonal drama into literal horror in both films. If I was getting paid a million dollars, I'd say I preferred Midsommar. Even though it dragged, the drug trips, bright color philosophy, gruesome deaths and consistently flawed main character left a stronger impression on me than Hereditary.
I'll certainly be on the lookout for the Director's Cut for Midsommer, but would like to see Ari do something very different with whatever film they direct next.
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The spirit of Wicker Man haunts this film in much the same way that Get Out had the specter of Stepford Wives hovering above it. Both blaze their own paths and stand on their own two feet, but I cannot help but feel a tad "been there/done that" by the time the credits rolled. Heredity was an infinitely superior movie but I still liked this enough to recommend it, especially if you are unfamiliar with the film that undoubtedly influenced it.
Knew nothing about this movie going in, and haven't seen Hereditary yet (I will be watching that asap now). Went and saw a matinee with a friend. I had childcare booked for the afternoon because of jury duty summons, but then the entire thing was dismissed so no jury duty for another 6 years and a couple free hours, woohoo! Glad I went, that was quite an experience.
First off, props to the sound engineer on this movie. It was really intense and added a ton to the experience. It was also great that it was just my friend and I and one other lady in the entire theater. No disruptions. I did laugh thinking that this older lady would have been sitting by herself in the theater if the impulse movie trip for my friend and I didn't happen. Fuuuuck that. Don't think I could watch it alone.
Second, the tripping visuals were so well done. That is by far the best representation I have seen in a movie of being on shrooms or something similar. So many great subtle hallucinations.
I am not big into horror movies but I enjoyed the ride on this one. It was devastating to watch straight out of the gate. It was a very strange feeling leaving the theater, like coming down off a huge emotional down pour. It was also interesting to come out of a movie in bright daylight (almost never happens with me) and have it reflect the disorienting affect of the non stop daylight that the movie had.
First off, props to the sound engineer on this movie. It was really intense and added a ton to the experience. It was also great that it was just my friend and I and one other lady in the entire theater. No disruptions. I did laugh thinking that this older lady would have been sitting by herself in the theater if the impulse movie trip for my friend and I didn't happen. Fuuuuck that. Don't think I could watch it alone.
Second, the tripping visuals were so well done. That is by far the best representation I have seen in a movie of being on shrooms or something similar. So many great subtle hallucinations.
I am not big into horror movies but I enjoyed the ride on this one. It was devastating to watch straight out of the gate. It was a very strange feeling leaving the theater, like coming down off a huge emotional down pour. It was also interesting to come out of a movie in bright daylight (almost never happens with me) and have it reflect the disorienting affect of the non stop daylight that the movie had.
Of course longer doesn't equal better but I'm all for an extended NC-17 cut that could possibly deliver the progressive impact I felt the theatrical version lacked.
Sucks that the MPAA's ratings can be such a hindrance to a "complete" movie.
Sucks that the MPAA's ratings can be such a hindrance to a "complete" movie.
I'm happy about this, since I'm one of those who was ready for more. I did feel the small drags throughout the middle to end, but I was never bored. I also had fun as a Scandinavian watching this. I was thinking we just scared off a good part of our tourists lol. And I was like "woo" when Florence Pugh (who's my favorite actress these days) said "thanks" in Swedish which by extension is the same in Danish.
Anyway, I paid attention to all of the symbolism this time, since Hereditary prepared me for that but there's individual moments I'm not sure I understood:
- Was the whole thing about feeding Christian puberty hair (and blood in his drink) a way to seduce him? Cause he had a hard time rejecting Maja while sitting at the dinner table. And when he went to impregnate her, it in turn also showed his true essence, in that he was basically over Dani for the past year and thus cheated on her with Maja? And the rune placed underneath his bed (that they had a "loving bond") was a way to make him believe that there could be something about this Maja? He also knew that she liked him.
- What was up with the guy with the "deformed" face (in a lack of a better word). Was he the result of in-breeding? Since they talked about cousins sometimes making love to each other. And them needing outsiders to come in and "help out." But I also took that the commune isn't really a family by blood, as you're basically a sister or brother to everyone when accepted into it. So when they said they needed outsiders for breeding, was that more so because they needed four outsiders for the offering? Or was the former scenario truly the case?
- What was the symbolism of Christian wearing the skin of the bear?
- What was up with the guy with the "deformed" face (in a lack of a better word). Was he the result of in-breeding? Since they talked about cousins sometimes making love to each other. And them needing outsiders to come in and "help out." But I also took that the commune isn't really a family by blood, as you're basically a sister or brother to everyone when accepted into it. So when they said they needed outsiders for breeding, was that more so because they needed four outsiders for the offering? Or was the former scenario truly the case?
- What was the symbolism of Christian wearing the skin of the bear?
I think my favorite part of the movie was how you could feel Dani's grief throughout the entire film (Florence performed those panic attacks so well). And how the commune affected her in that state, and the choices she made because of what she had lost and didn't really have.
Those opening 15 minutes pretitle was insanely good.
Saw it and enjoyed it, but I think I liked Hereditary more.
Here's a good read on some of the symbolism and easter eggs:
https://www.businessinsider.com/mid...DcElfgsHZo9zrO5_jWrHFU6QXoor27X8aR-ZTS3RWVa2k
Also, a meme I made:
Here's a good read on some of the symbolism and easter eggs:
https://www.businessinsider.com/mid...DcElfgsHZo9zrO5_jWrHFU6QXoor27X8aR-ZTS3RWVa2k
Also, a meme I made:
It's a significant number in Norse mythology. Odin hung for 9 days and 9 nights, there are 9 worlds, etc. It's like the number 7 in Christianity.
when they're walking to the village and they're playing that flute thing in 6/4 or whatever it's just perfect.
So about Pelle's parents..
Losing them both in a fire, that had to be his parents being selected as the sacrifice right? I wonder if they fucked up and brought the wrong outsiders in and that is what motivated Pelle to redeem himself and chose correctly with his visitors.
One of the old men mentions to Josh that specific people are picked out for "inbreeding" and joining their society
I just got out of my showing and I really enjoyed it but I went in expecting a horror movie and didn't really get that at all. I noticed a few times that trees or hills in the background had scary faces in them and I was wondering if I missed a whole lot more or if they only appeared in the drug scenes.
The tapestry when they first get to the village that pans by the camera shows all of the things she did to him. The pubic hair, the vaginal blood, the pregnancy.
Lol
I agree. But that's a positive in my book.
Would you folks recommend this for someone like me who hated Hereditary?
Well... "hated" is not exactly the right term.... That movie was enjoyable enough but the final part of it just really annoyed me, hahah.
Well... "hated" is not exactly the right term.... That movie was enjoyable enough but the final part of it just really annoyed me, hahah.
What exactly in particular annoyed you with the ending of Hereditary? Like you I didn't hate it but I wasn't all that high on it and towards the end I checked out and was waiting for it to be over.
I felt pretty much the exact same about Midsommar, probably even more so.
For me it's just so clichéd and predictable, basically, like I could see the ending happening from a million miles away. I really wanted it to surprise me, to shock me, but in the end during the last act the movie just bored me and it was such a huge disappointment.
Well you might want to skip this or see it for cheap. I thought this was even more predictable than Hereditary.
I honestly can't say anything really surprised me and I was hoping the director might pull a swerve and things would turn out different.
I posted earlier that the director makes gorgeous looking films and gets great performances out of the lead actors but from a narrative perspective I can't say I'm a big fan.
As a horror director Aster's thing seems to be using fairly standard narratives lifted from other films to explore incredibly personal themes of loss, grief, etc. in incredibly raw ways. Hereditary was basically telling a story of family grief by way of Rosemary's Baby, imbuing the mundane drama with a bleak sense of overwhelming helplessness and fatalism via the supernatural elements.
Midsommar is basically
I don't really see the general narrative as something to praise in these movies, but that isn't the point. The point is how the personal elements are explored through the lens of horror. It's the same general idea as The Witch.
Midsommar is basically
a Summer break-up movie with themes of moving past tragedy and finding one's place by way of Wicker Man.
I don't really see the general narrative as something to praise in these movies, but that isn't the point. The point is how the personal elements are explored through the lens of horror. It's the same general idea as The Witch.
You can hear Connie being killed at one point right? It was very hard to hear at least in my theater but it sounded like a feminine scream when Dani takes the pie out of the oven.
Oh yeah.
There's a scream in the middle of the day that causes everyone to stop and look around. That had to be the moment Connie was killed.
I really feel like we're missing a scene with the English couple, which would hopefully be part of the director's cut.
I really didn't get the sense that their fate was in any way "deserved" the way the others could seem. The movie has a fairy tale vibe going on where we see the characters cut down as a twisted karmic "punishment" - Mark pisses on the ancestral tree, Josh takes pictures of the book after being explcitly told not to, Christian is Christian, etc. But Simon and Connie's only crime is reacting with horror to the elders' suicides, which doesn't seem proportionate to getting blood-eagled and... whatever happened to Connie.
They're all there explicitly to get sacrificed so it's not like there needs to be a reason behind it, but to fit that fairy tale feel it seems like there needed to be another step there.
They're all there explicitly to get sacrificed so it's not like there needs to be a reason behind it, but to fit that fairy tale feel it seems like there needed to be another step there.
I'll just look up to see what extra scenes have been added, because I don't think I could sit through this again for even longer. But the NC-17 tells me there's a chance they're going to show
more of Mark, Connie, and Simon's deaths.
Fucking work kept me from seeing the announcement today. Fuckers sold out.
Haven't been this salty about missing a drop in a long time.
This is definitely a movie you want to catch a matinee screening of... ideally exiting from a dark theatre into a bright sunny day. I'd say it enhances the experience of watching it.
Great vid recommendation. Thanks for sharing it!
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I missed it too for other reasons (being preoccupied). Oh well...