Midsommar (2019) proves that horror can be just as scary in broad daylight as it is in the dark.
Ever since I saw the The Wicker Man (1973) I’ve been a fan of folk horror. Midsommar is an excellent addition to the genre.
The film uses a lot of sneaky tricks to create a sense of growing unease for viewers. One example is that a lot of the Swedish dialogue does not have subtitles for the audience to understand what is going on. This way, the audience connects more with the American tourists who don’t speak Swedish.
Another example is the use of diegesis. Diegetic music is where the music is in the story itself and not just heard by the audience. In effect, we are watching actors being affected by the music that is also affecting us.
We are also able to feel some of the discomforts and phobias of the characters – such as Mark who pulls his socks over his jeans because he is afraid of ticks. This was written into the story by writer-director Ari Aster who, himself, wore his socks up over his pants while filming due to his real phobia of ticks and other insects that might bite him.
Aster also wrote the script after a painful breakup with his girlfriend. Aspects of that life upheaval made its way into the story.
While the film’s setting is Sweden, most of the filming actually took place near Prague, Hungary. The female lead, Florence Pugh, also played the role of Natasha Romanoff’s sister in Marvel’s Black Widow.
If you have already seen the Midsommar, I recommend that on your next viewing you pay close attention to all the artwork in the background of the scenes. It all connects to events that happen in the film.
A lot of thought went into this movie and I appreciate the added depth that it provides to the finished film. By the way, the movie was originally given an NC-17 rating. To bring it down to R rating and shorten it up for mainstream audiences, about 30 minutes of material had to be cut from the film. That material has been restored in the Director’s Cut of the movie.
4.5 Out of 5 Stars
