"Midsommar" Movie From "Hereditary" Director (Discussion Thread)

Coolin'

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Just finished and I hated this shyt.

I thought hereditary was the best horror movie of the decade

idk man

I re-watched it this past weekend, and I can honestly say it was extremely underwhelming. Visually, the film is dope but the story really never goes anywhere. The “gore” was nothing compared to Hereditary either.
 

FlyRy

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hey come on now, he did forget her birthday!

... but seriously, i assume that was the point, that was the "horror" of it.

i can admit that these A24/Fox Searchlight/Whatever subdivision indie style atmospheric "horror" genre just isn't for me. People rave about these types of movies, but i always end up just shrugging them off - this, Hereditary, It Follows, The Witch, the Babadook, even Us to a lesser degree, etc. they're all "fine." atmosphere driven tension isn't doing it for me.
"Elevated horror"

@MartyMcFly :umad:
 

storyteller

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I FINALLY got to watch this ish. I think I mighta been the most enthusiastic in the horror thread about Hereditary but I slacked. Anyway, my thoughts with spoilers..

Hereditary hit me way harder, because the mental health aspect was heavy on my mind when I first experienced it. This time around, I still think Midsommar was good but it didn't have the same personal impact. Looking back on some interviews from Aster, his break-up at the time of writing and that's where this allegory is trippy as hell. Like with Hereditary you were watching people sink into mental issues embodied by a cult, this time around it's a deep exploration on relationships falling apart. What I like that Aster does with both is that he manages not to beat you over the head with thos motifs, his films can stand alone without diving so deep on them. With Midsommar, the cult aspects landed moreso than the relationship stuff (from what I've gleaned the director's cut goes more deeply into the relationship stuff though). The fertility rituals were extreme but they also reminded me A LOT of a World Religions class that I took back in college and some of the rituals plus the logic that was applied. Hearing the discussions about ritual and cycles, that stuff really peaked my interest at times. Anyway, even on just a pair of big ones, Aster's got a bit of an auteur vibe going...you can expect it to be more about building a vibe and questions early but with gory, visceral bits mixed to hang on to the audience. Alienation is another big part of the game. Throw in the cult stuff and reincarnation ideals for the supernatural vibe and you've got the main ingredients even if the recipes vary from there.

Part of me wonders if Midsommar getting even more love than Hereditary comes from the fact that people were more prepared on what to expect going into it and how Aster's debut had unfolded. It might also help that the foreign setting makes the weirdness of the characters' behavior easier to buy but idk. Both movies landed for me regardless. Either way, if Hereditary hit me like a solid 8.5 or 9; Midsommar's more a 7.5 or 8 to me. I'm docking points for the shout out to Wickerman at the end being way too on the nose and damn near comedic in its dark way. It's a really good horror regardless, but I'd call Hereditary great.
 
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Watching now for the first time


At the part where they bash the old man’s head in

:francis:

I’ll have to finish this tomorrow,



I feel like even the most white washed black man would be like,

I’m good, and not stay even one night
:hubie:

And I think they chose a very dark skinned black man to show the contrast between him and the white people.
 
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Just finished it.


:francis:


Let’s see:

Being the only black person in a group of white friends

Going with an unknown person (especially white, and especially in EUROPE) to a remote place in the middle of nowhere

Feeling weird, and STAYING

Feeling weird around people who don’t speak, and STAYING

At least the other two felt weird and attempted to leave.

And another:

:francis:
 
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Just finished it.


:francis:


Let’s see:

Being the only black person in a group of white friends

Going with an unknown person (especially white, and especially in EUROPE) to a remote place in the middle of nowhere

Feeling weird, and STAYING

Feeling weird around people who don’t speak, and STAYING

At least the other two felt weird and attempted to leave.

And another:

:francis:

You saw what happened when people tried to leave.
 
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