This is one of the best reviews of Midsommar I've seen yet. You did such a great job of breaking it down without spoiling anything. You have a true talent for reviewing movies. You get right into things. I also love how you take the horror genre seriously and dive into the subconscious ideas inherent in the genre. I love horror and it's so cool to watch someone examine it in such a thoughtful understanding way. You killed it, so to be speak haha.
I'm so glad you decided to watch/review this one. It's one of the most memorable, provocative experiences I've had with a movie this year, and regardless of how people feel about it, it's sure to spark some worthwhile conversations. btw, you tagged it as 2018.
I know people are focusing on the break-up theme, but more important is the indoctrination theme. This entire community fashioned traditions that work perfectly for indoctrinating new candidates into their community. Dani having been recently orphaned had very little connecting her to the outside world. Christian, a boyfriend that wanted to leave her, was her only relationship where she felt she had belonging. It was fragile and Pelle worked with his people to exploit that weakness.
Saw it last night with a group of like 10 people. No one really LIKED it perse but we all had lengthy discussion about it. It made an impact on us for sure.
Listening to your thoughtful review sparked an idea related to the lack of emotional depth or hollowness to the characters and their story arcs. It seems to me that the entire architecture of the plot combined with its visual iconography is supposed to one more layer depicting the terrifying culture of The Harga. Like the graduate students on this trip, we are being given visual & linguistic symbols, clues, and depictions of a certain way of looking at nature, reproduction, and death. Consider the scene when the camera pans left across the comic-book-esque panels which show the making of a rather disgusting beverage, we experience a physical or emotional reaction, but don't necessarily get a fully-realized emotional depth to the cartoony characters in the drawings. Aster intentionally seeks to capture certain lacks or lacunae in the characters to allow space for his audience to imbue the characters with our own tortured and confused emotional essences. It truly is a remarkable filmic construction to be able to provoke these uneasy feelings in such a fresh, striking, and oddly elemental way.
I highly recommend checking out the director’s extended cut. Although there is some superfluous footage, there are a few additional scenes that help flesh out the characters, particularly with an argument between Dani and Christian.
It's been a while since I've seen one of your reviews and it's very refreshing you hear your insights and your understanding of the events in Midsommar. Your insights on tradition made me personally pause for a moment.
Nice review! I certainly agree that this movie is quite an experience. The attention to detail that went into crafting this movie is fantastic and I love how Aster expects us to actually pay attention to those details. The foreshadowing in the artwork, the runes, the subtleties in the costumes - all great! I agree with you about that underwhelming sense of hollowness regarding the characters, though the more I've thought about the movie, the more I've appreciated the tie-in with the overall themes. The opening traumatic grief for Dani initially felt very under explored once we hit the midpoint of the film, but I think it was meant to be less about the grief itself and more about what that meant regarding her sense of family, especially given Christian's inability/lack of desire to truly be there for her. That concept builds towards the end, especially as Dani was progressively integrated into the "family" of the community. The group screaming/wailing changes from being something frightening into an unsettling expression of solidarity. I also really loved the dual-meaning of 'midsommar' itself. We've got the midsommar festival which is the catalyst for everything, but since this story is truly more focused on our main characters and their own personal issues than it is on the plot, there's also a thematic connection there. We learn that this Swedish community relates a person's life to the seasons: 0-18 = spring, 18-36 = summer, 36-54 = fall, and 54-72 = winter. Our core characters are PhD students and in their late-20s... metaphorically, mid-summer in their lives! I love how many different ways you can interpret Aster's films.
You are extremely intelligent and so well-spoken. I love what you mentioned about claustrophobia, humor/fear, social obligations and the "queasy subtle haze"
Just wanted to say I really love ur movie reviews and ur personal taste in films. Saw that a bunch a of people were discussing this one but I honestly scrolled through looking for your video on the subject, Will be watching a bunch of ur reviews when I get a chance.
imo, the breakup wasn't the central part of the story, it's just one of the building blocks of the story. dani's grief and psychological issues (amplified by her family's death) and her neediness is the real story here. people like to see it as a breakup movie and that's why they get disappointed or they don't understand it. i believe she was never able to break free on her own prior to her trip to harga and she always depends on people that she's familiar with (most likely because of her anxieties). the sudden death of her family is traumatic (although anyone would feel the same way) but it's worst for her because i'm sure she has a toxic relationship with her family wherein she always blames herself, which is evident when she makes excuses for christian for forgetting her birthday (and instead took accountability for not reminding him). i always remember what lars von trier said about melancholia, how depressives come out stronger in difficult situations. and i feel that it's the same here. harga was a perfect place for her, almost cathartic in a way, as it allowed her to grieve and to find closure for her family's death, it also allowed her the space to break free from her dependency towards christian (and from her unhealthy relationship). i sort of believe that some people live their entire lives where nobody understands them (and that leads them to experiencing depression and anxiety), and in this movie dani finally found a place where she fits and they don't treat her like an outsider. and imo, that's why a lot of people going thru depression and anxiety can totally relate to this movie. well that's just my 2 cents.
Jeez you summarized the good and bad i thought of this movie perfectly, thanks! Looking forward to your next reviews, this being my first vid of yours i watched 😊
Great review. I just recently saw it again and got a lot more out of it then the first viewing. Love this film. Aster is definitely a director to watch. Keep up the awesome work.
You have so many fascinating things to say about the movie and you have a great way of articulating them. Other reviewers seem to have missed what I believe the movie was trying to do, but you hit it spot on as far as I'm concerned. Cheers
I love your reviews. Seeing a mind like yours is always refreshing and inspiring these days :) keep up the great work I’m interested in the films use of psychedelia and his attitude towards entheogens and the occult seems very choice and enlightened
I still need to give this movie a second watch to figure out where i stand, but one thing is for sure I love Ari Aster's directing style and I'm on board for whatever else he has in store. Also appreciate the back to back reviews.
Again thank you! Idk if you'll ever see this but I am curious about how you prepare for these reviews, I know you've mentioned at times taking literal notes. This is not at all a skeptical or negatively critical comment, but personally if I were to attempt to do a similar review channel I would most likely prefer to watch a film once just for my own experience, taking in the piece hopefully to fulfill my own enjoyment, unavoidably having an inner dialogue and discussion, then probably on a 2nd or 3rd viewing I'd want to take very deep & specific notes in a notebook to be analyzed and updated later on. I really do like your method of conveying your impressions or at least my sense of any method or practice you utilize. So many film buffs and "critics" come across as super pretentious and condescending and overall I haven't really gotten that sense from you. It can be a slippery slope when trying to be as genuine and honest conveying one's thoughts or feelings about something you're passionate about without falling into a trap of condescension & massaging your ego. Too many are "intelligence bragging" losing sight of subtlety and balanced perception, I am probably guilty of this once in awhile myself so I'm kinda sensitive towards it, which ultimately can turn some folks off to discovering their own passionate enjoyment of a film and works of art in general. Lastly I'll mention my giant love & appreciation of a short video of yours I saw recently from a few years ago in which you did not review a film but gave a heartfelt and very genuinely vulnerable comment on depression and anxiety, the terrifying hopelessness that many of us struggle with day to day but with a message of love and acceptance. I cannot fully describe how much I connected to that and truly appreciate those words and the overall sentiment of that video! Great to feel some beauty and thoughtfulness added to this world of angry hostility and despair which can be the illusion we feel ourselves drowning in! Thank you very much!
Yeah! I was waiting for you to do this one. I had great experience watching it. Was in a full theater and the tension was palpable. Everyone was super quiet throughout... except for a few groans of disgust during some of the more graphic parts.
Your reviews are damn good! I would recommend you watch (if you haven't watched it yet) Rainer Sarnet's "November" (2017). I'm curious of your opinion on this one.
I’ve followed you for a few years now and I just love your channel and I have a couple questions.. 1. I know you’re not a huge fan of it but could you review Black Swan? 2. Have you seen East of Eden (1955) and if so could you review that as well?
Thank you for your support. 1. Yes, I have been pondering doing a review for that one lately. 2. I have seen it but it's been years. Perhaps I'll do that one at some point.
Midsommar is one of my all time favourites and rewards repeated viewing. Also there is a longer cut that fleshes out the central relationship a bit more but removed originally as more superfluous overall to reduce the theatrical cut running time. Thanks for your review 🙌
I don't think the central thread of Midsommar is the breakup between Dani and Christian. I believe the narrative thread is the loss of Dani's family and the assimilation she experiences into a new family. Christian is a consistently selfish character who never shows us he has anything to offer Dani. He doesn't value her. The village, on the other hand, does value her and they can give back to her at the end of the film what she lost at the beginning.
That's wild how you describe your feelings as "queasy." That's the exact feeling I had while watching "Old" by M. Night. Some of the topics they touch on are visceral, and there's always this feeling of openness, and claustrophobia occurring simultaneously. The ending was not my cup of tea, but the meat of the movie was quite impressive. My feeling was like having an itch that I can't scratch. This sort of outside force that has dominion and control over a somewhat innocent group of people with medical issues not within their control.
I enjoyed it, off course if you didn't like Hereditary then don't check it out. Hereditary is such a depressing film....and I love it! So far I'm impressed with Ari Aster's work.
I didn't like this as much as Hereditary, nor was I as traumatized as I was from watching Hereditary. Having said that, I still liked it. It was a very slow burn (no pun intended on the end) and those tend to be some of my favorite movies. Ari Aster has some very fucked up thoughts in his head, and I love that he's able to perfectly capture them on film. Hereditary was the better movie, but this was much more pleasant to look at. Just like Hereditary felt like a two hour long panic attack, you said it best when you said that this felt like a two and a half hour trip gone wrong. You should post a question in the link below. Letterboxd is having a Q & A with Ari Aster, and you can post a question for him on the site that he might answer. letterboxd.com/crew/list/the-ari-aster-qa/
I too thought Hereditary had some funny moments. Spoilers- I always thought Gabriel Byrne's character's cause of death is just a pun on the phonetic pronunciation of the actor's last name. I might be crazy on that one though. The stoner friend texts the main character got were pretty well done too. Also when the main character is checking out a seated derriere of the girl sitting in front of him, that's basically a good chunk of the Highschool experience for guys in two seconds. Very rarely has that been so concisely expressed.
I got the sense that the Swedish friend set everyone up so that they all would go to the village, especially Dani. I believe he murdered Dani's sister and parents.
I felt like the film was primarily about Dani's search for connection, and how she eventually finds it through this cult. The cult members seemed to be all about community and connection to one another, which is something Dani desperately needed. She didn't feel like anyone understood her pain (I've felt like that), and her alienation was compounded by her aloof boyfriend (I've also been in a situation where I didn't break up with someone due to her going through a very hard time). A bad situation all around, perfectly setting up Dani to be inducted properly into this ultra-empathic fertility-cult. Definitely not my favorite film, lol, but Ari Aster is obviously a very talented filmmaker. I also didn't gush over Hereditary. My brother said it was the best horror film of '18, but despite some great acting and well-filmed scenes, it just didn't do it for me. Still, a filmmaker I'll follow.
Would love to see your impression of Christian Petzold's new film TRANSIT. What he does with adapting the film's source novel and how he ingeniously changes it is brilliant. The best new film I've seen so far in 2019.
I loved this film. While I agree it missed some Marks, it definitely landed in some areas as well and the film as a whole is beautiful. Definitely need another watch.
I didn't like Midsommar. Poor characterisation, a lack of tension in the second half. The cliff/hammer scene was just sensationalism. The best part was the hilarious sex scene. Hereditary is a lot better.
Hi there. Sorry for the sidetrack. Just wondered why, despite my subscribing to your channel (and clicking the bell), your vids don't turn up as recommendations on the main youtube dashboard. I guess it's a youtube thing, and maybe due to number of subscribers, but thought maybe it might be a thing (like a setting or something) you've not done. I don't know. I'm not a youtube expert. Your stuff deserves to be seen and recommended. I watch a lot of film stuff, and, having discovered your channel just last week ('cos of the Midsommar review - I damn love the film), and having binge-watched a random number of your videos since, I'm surprised to find that when I go on the main dashboard there's no recommendations. There is for all the other channels I watch regularly. So, that's it. I mean, a random viewer like me, with little income can't do much to support financially, but, your having become one of personal favourite, most intelligent and heartfelt film critics (mostly your work of the last couple of years), I thought the least I can do is draw attention to the fact that your not work here is not getting as much attention as I think it possibly could. I'm guessing, considering the quality of critique, you should, and probably will, get a huge boost to your subscriptions in the future. But folks need to be reminded of your presence on the main page. Hope you get what I mean. Thanks for the smarts. Best of luck in your endeavours. And cheers from Blighty. :)
I finally saw this yesterday. Not sure how i feel about it, i for sure admired the film making style and Florence Pugh was great, also the cinematography was beautiful. But there were some scenes that were very disturbing
nice discussion as always i wish i liked this film. i feel like it doesn’t really consider cultural norms, but it instead it presents situations in which it demands you be provoked whilst ignoring that anyone, characters or audience, have a brain (also because the abstraction is usually never pointed to reflect an actual state of mind). this is just my two cents though !
an extremely powerful movie about how tribal groups can exist in a vacuum and that the rituals can develop into horrific events that reflect on how the past pagan activities can er emerge quickly in modern society if they are hidden away - in this case to a remote setting in scandanavia - the metaphor of it being symbolic of a bad acid trip is a strong links with the images of a hippy style community, cleansed in white robes, indulging in drugs to assist in free expression
It wasn’t trying to be unpredictable, and it was predictable in a good way because the characters’ fates are inevitably obvious, but how they get there is not entirely predictable, so the film builds up suspense that way.
What's a shame is it does such a great job framing a believable dysfunctional relationship where you can really side with either character, and I love that subtlety of like "yeah, he's deuchy but he's not a total dick, he tries but doesn't love her anymore, and she does have issues and needs a lot of emotional care" , so it's nobody's fault really, just they're not right for each other. And I was so gripped by this greatly thought provoking relationship and really wanted to see how the couple dynamic would develop, that it was just a massive disappointment when they get to the village and Cristian goes full asshole mode, like "nah, it's cool they kill their elders, go have fun while I take some notes". That totally killed the compelling humanity of what they had set up! And from then on it's all weird shit with no emotional core cos halfway thru the movie they're basically not a couple anymore, so that undermines the emotional tension needed for the finale to really hit you in the feels. I was literally laughing at the bizarre rituals by the end and I think it's cos I had no reason to be invested in the protagonists. I think that's its only real flaw. Oh, and the fact the festival is an awful time and not a very appealing greeting card for new recruits, even someone as damaged as Dani. Other than that, it's terrific: amazing mastery of tone, trippy cinematography, phenomenal depiction of grief by Pugh, and a great look into manipulation.
I want to see this movie but it didn't come to my theater which kind of sucked so I've been waiting patiently for your version of the the review so when it comes out on video now I'll be watching it cuz I like your reviews on movies the very truthful cuz I did not like hereditary good shock value but very slow paced too slow paced for my taste but this one looks way more interesting Midsommar
excellent review of the issues that are thrown into the melting pot as you view it - once past the horror that emerges i think that it opens one's thinking about the role of tribes, the rules that groups adopt, the morality that tribes develop, the prejudice that outsiders bring to a group plus of course sexuality, procreation, ceremony - great movie - great review
Keep posting your reviews in my arthouse group, and have also just posted this as I watched last night. I too needed to sleep on it lol. Please search for ‘Pure Cinema’ on Facebook...you’d go down da bomb girl!
People entering my room, okay? Checking the porn I watch. And then calling their mates. And their mates chatting to random people. An algorithm I wrote back in Liverpool. That's what I'm saying when I'm saying computers have limits, miss.
Was Ari identifying with Dani? I'm not sure about that. I think Dani comes off as very needy and self absorbed. This movie felt more like a condemnation of her.
It had some elements of being a good film, but ultimately it's a real turd. The story was the obvious problem, beyond stupid, and far too long. I was impressed with the lead actress, she was a real bright spot. Midsommar reminded me a little of another wacky film, Kevin Smith's Tusk. Horrible movie. Now, I have lost quite a bit of interest in modern horror films. I'm probably going to skip that Light House movie, and will definitely not watch that Antlers movie.
The bad in this movie FAR outweighs the good, unfortunately, but it is certainly better than Hereditary by leaps and bounds. Also borrows far too much and too blatantly from its influences instead of handling it more tactfully and respectfully. It was a decent attempt but also just had a lot of tropes and predictability that did not work for me as a viewer.
I SUPER Subbed after watching this. Because THIS, is Awesome!🤗 Ari Aster & Jordan Peele are completely reinventing horror, into authentic horror. I'm thankful for them! In the movie they show a brief type of tapestry where two girls marry or get together in some kind of ritual. I thought that red haired girl wanted to be with Dani, but it went a different path. For a horror film it was very interesting and kept you guessing. I LOVED it! Moral of midsommar story: Don't be a typical GUY dipshit & treat your girlfriend like trash...or else, karma! Forgetting your girlfriends birthday. After years together? Really?!😳😣
okay.....ive tried every avenue possible toget your attention in hopes you will review pontypool, lol. its cool if you dont, but if you could let me know youve seen it please......then ican stop trying.lol.please?
wow. i'm confused that you thought mother was a comedy and that aronofsky takes himself too seriously, yet you found this film compelling. i was laughing the whole time. this film was a cartoon. poor christian was manipulated from start to finish. he had zero choices in this caricature. ari aster's remake of wicker man would be right at home in the hands of m knight shyamalan.
Hi Maggie! My name is Eddie Green. I sent you a DM on both Facebook and Instagram. I would love to have you on my podcast as a featured guest! All the details are in the message. Hope to hear from you soon! EG
It's boring and pretentious, meandering, self-indulgent and ultimately, dully obvious. But I do appreciate the style--the cinematography and production design. But it's meaningless. And Us is just awful.
Next time you grieve, and grief is an integral aspect if not the most important aspect of this film. Have someone tell you that your "brand" of grief is funny. See how you feel about it then.
The great thing about art, is that you can explore pain in a multitude of ways, including humor. To dismiss all ironic humor as offensive or insensitive misses the point completely. Sometimes it can cause themes of grief and pain to become more palpable, as it was here, for me at least.
@@deepfocuslens Honestly I do understand what you are saying. However, I saw not a single frame in that film that I regarded as funny. Now, there were jump scare addicted teenagers in the crowd that laughed through the whole film. Perspective I think makes all the difference. Thematically for me if there was humor in there because of the subject matter, it missed its mark. There are all kinds of funny. Fart joke juvenile funny, dude I cannot believe we did that funny, and even hey I cannot believe we just came that close to getting killed funny. From light comedy, to dark humor and irony and all variations and combinations in between. I simply agree to disagree in this instance. Honestly this is the first review of yours I have ever seen. You may have another that I whole heartedly agree with. Sincerely, H.
I could be wrong, but films today doesn't have any good morals; the bf didn't need to die...just break up already. Idiots without brains will adore these kind of films. I still don't understand why Dani's sister killed herself and her parents.
The movie is incredible predictable, you can see what's going to happen from a mile, everything is spoiled through out the stupid interaction between the tourists and the cult. The acting is very mediocre (the characters and dialogs are full cliches), the direction is average too although the camera work and filming place were ok. Overrated movie.
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This is one of the best reviews of Midsommar I've seen yet. You did such a great job of breaking it down without spoiling anything. You have a true talent for reviewing movies. You get right into things. I also love how you take the horror genre seriously and dive into the subconscious ideas inherent in the genre. I love horror and it's so cool to watch someone examine it in such a thoughtful understanding way. You killed it, so to be speak haha.
I'm so glad you decided to watch/review this one. It's one of the most memorable, provocative experiences I've had with a movie this year, and regardless of how people feel about it, it's sure to spark some worthwhile conversations.
btw, you tagged it as 2018.
I know people are focusing on the break-up theme, but more important is the indoctrination theme. This entire community fashioned traditions that work perfectly for indoctrinating new candidates into their community. Dani having been recently orphaned had very little connecting her to the outside world. Christian, a boyfriend that wanted to leave her, was her only relationship where she felt she had belonging. It was fragile and Pelle worked with his people to exploit that weakness.
Saw it last night with a group of like 10 people. No one really LIKED it perse but we all had lengthy discussion about it. It made an impact on us for sure.
That inevitably makes it a good film if you’re discussing it at length afterwards. I loved it and think it’s a masterpiece.
Listening to your thoughtful review sparked an idea related to the lack of emotional depth or hollowness to the characters and their story arcs. It seems to me that the entire architecture of the plot combined with its visual iconography is supposed to one more layer depicting the terrifying culture of The Harga. Like the graduate students on this trip, we are being given visual & linguistic symbols, clues, and depictions of a certain way of looking at nature, reproduction, and death. Consider the scene when the camera pans left across the comic-book-esque panels which show the making of a rather disgusting beverage, we experience a physical or emotional reaction, but don't necessarily get a fully-realized emotional depth to the cartoony characters in the drawings. Aster intentionally seeks to capture certain lacks or lacunae in the characters to allow space for his audience to imbue the characters with our own tortured and confused emotional essences. It truly is a remarkable filmic construction to be able to provoke these uneasy feelings in such a fresh, striking, and oddly elemental way.
I highly recommend checking out the director’s extended cut. Although there is some superfluous footage, there are a few additional scenes that help flesh out the characters, particularly with an argument between Dani and Christian.
It's been a while since I've seen one of your reviews and it's very refreshing you hear your insights and your understanding of the events in Midsommar. Your insights on tradition made me personally pause for a moment.
Nice review! I certainly agree that this movie is quite an experience. The attention to detail that went into crafting this movie is fantastic and I love how Aster expects us to actually pay attention to those details. The foreshadowing in the artwork, the runes, the subtleties in the costumes - all great!
I agree with you about that underwhelming sense of hollowness regarding the characters, though the more I've thought about the movie, the more I've appreciated the tie-in with the overall themes. The opening traumatic grief for Dani initially felt very under explored once we hit the midpoint of the film, but I think it was meant to be less about the grief itself and more about what that meant regarding her sense of family, especially given Christian's inability/lack of desire to truly be there for her. That concept builds towards the end, especially as Dani was progressively integrated into the "family" of the community. The group screaming/wailing changes from being something frightening into an unsettling expression of solidarity.
I also really loved the dual-meaning of 'midsommar' itself. We've got the midsommar festival which is the catalyst for everything, but since this story is truly more focused on our main characters and their own personal issues than it is on the plot, there's also a thematic connection there. We learn that this Swedish community relates a person's life to the seasons: 0-18 = spring, 18-36 = summer, 36-54 = fall, and 54-72 = winter. Our core characters are PhD students and in their late-20s... metaphorically, mid-summer in their lives! I love how many different ways you can interpret Aster's films.
You are extremely intelligent and so well-spoken. I love what you mentioned about claustrophobia, humor/fear, social obligations and the "queasy subtle haze"
Just wanted to say I really love ur movie reviews and ur personal taste in films. Saw that a bunch a
of people were discussing this one but I honestly scrolled through looking for your video on the subject, Will be watching a bunch of ur reviews when I get a chance.
imo, the breakup wasn't the central part of the story, it's just one of the building blocks of the story. dani's grief and psychological issues (amplified by her family's death) and her neediness is the real story here. people like to see it as a breakup movie and that's why they get disappointed or they don't understand it. i believe she was never able to break free on her own prior to her trip to harga and she always depends on people that she's familiar with (most likely because of her anxieties). the sudden death of her family is traumatic (although anyone would feel the same way) but it's worst for her because i'm sure she has a toxic relationship with her family wherein she always blames herself, which is evident when she makes excuses for christian for forgetting her birthday (and instead took accountability for not reminding him). i always remember what lars von trier said about melancholia, how depressives come out stronger in difficult situations. and i feel that it's the same here. harga was a perfect place for her, almost cathartic in a way, as it allowed her to grieve and to find closure for her family's death, it also allowed her the space to break free from her dependency towards christian (and from her unhealthy relationship). i sort of believe that some people live their entire lives where nobody understands them (and that leads them to experiencing depression and anxiety), and in this movie dani finally found a place where she fits and they don't treat her like an outsider. and imo, that's why a lot of people going thru depression and anxiety can totally relate to this movie. well that's just my 2 cents.
Jeez you summarized the good and bad i thought of this movie perfectly, thanks! Looking forward to your next reviews, this being my first vid of yours i watched 😊
Great review. I just recently saw it again and got a lot more out of it then the first viewing. Love this film. Aster is definitely a director to watch. Keep up the awesome work.
I truly love this channel, probably the best film related channel on CZcams, would love to see your review of Wings of Desire.
You have so many fascinating things to say about the movie and you have a great way of articulating them. Other reviewers seem to have missed what I believe the movie was trying to do, but you hit it spot on as far as I'm concerned. Cheers
I love your reviews. Seeing a mind like yours is always refreshing and inspiring these days :) keep up the great work
I’m interested in the films use of psychedelia and his attitude towards entheogens and the occult seems very choice and enlightened
I still need to give this movie a second watch to figure out where i stand, but one thing is for sure I love Ari Aster's directing style and I'm on board for whatever else he has in store. Also appreciate the back to back reviews.
Again thank you!
Idk if you'll ever see this but I am curious about how you prepare for these reviews, I know you've mentioned at times taking literal notes. This is not at all a skeptical or negatively critical comment, but personally if I were to attempt to do a similar review channel I would most likely prefer to watch a film once just for my own experience, taking in the piece hopefully to fulfill my own enjoyment, unavoidably having an inner dialogue and discussion, then probably on a 2nd or 3rd viewing I'd want to take very deep & specific notes in a notebook to be analyzed and updated later on. I really do like your method of conveying your impressions or at least my sense of any method or practice you utilize. So many film buffs and "critics" come across as super pretentious and condescending and overall I haven't really gotten that sense from you. It can be a slippery slope when trying to be as genuine and honest conveying one's thoughts or feelings about something you're passionate about without falling into a trap of condescension & massaging your ego. Too many are "intelligence bragging" losing sight of subtlety and balanced perception, I am probably guilty of this once in awhile myself so I'm kinda sensitive towards it, which ultimately can turn some folks off to discovering their own passionate enjoyment of a film and works of art in general. Lastly I'll mention my giant love & appreciation of a short video of yours I saw recently from a few years ago in which you did not review a film but gave a heartfelt and very genuinely vulnerable comment on depression and anxiety, the terrifying hopelessness that many of us struggle with day to day but with a message of love and acceptance. I cannot fully describe how much I connected to that and truly appreciate those words and the overall sentiment of that video! Great to feel some beauty and thoughtfulness added to this world of angry hostility and despair which can be the illusion we feel ourselves drowning in! Thank you very much!
Your reviews are on point as always. But I'm curious, do you like Tarkovsky at all? Peter Greenaway? Jan Svankmajer?
Jan Svankmajer is AMAZING so underrsted
would like to see your books or vinyl collections someday??
Yeah! I was waiting for you to do this one. I had great experience watching it. Was in a full theater and the tension was palpable. Everyone was super quiet throughout... except for a few groans of disgust during some of the more graphic parts.
I would love to hear your full thoughts on Jordan Peele’s US. That movie had such talk and I’m curious to know your thoughts!!!
Your reviews are damn good! I would recommend you watch (if you haven't watched it yet) Rainer Sarnet's "November" (2017). I'm curious of your opinion on this one.
I saw the original Wickerman. This film takes imagery and a little bit of the culture Commentary, but is far more layered and deep thematically.
I’ve followed you for a few years now and I just love your channel and I have a couple questions..
1. I know you’re not a huge fan of it but could you review Black Swan?
2. Have you seen East of Eden (1955) and if so could you review that as well?
Thank you for your support.
1. Yes, I have been pondering doing a review for that one lately.
2. I have seen it but it's been years. Perhaps I'll do that one at some point.
Unrelated to the film, what are your favorite youtube channels that do cultural (not necessarily just film) criticism/commentary?
Movie may have been slow but to me it was such an incredible experience. That cliff scene....
Great review, randomly came across your Channel now I'm subscribed
Midsommar is one of my all time favourites and rewards repeated viewing. Also there is a longer cut that fleshes out the central relationship a bit more but removed originally as more superfluous overall to reduce the theatrical cut running time. Thanks for your review 🙌
Excellent! I had hoped that you would see it, review it with passion. I found it to be one of the most fascinating films I have ever seen.
I don't think the central thread of Midsommar is the breakup between Dani and Christian. I believe the narrative thread is the loss of Dani's family and the assimilation she experiences into a new family. Christian is a consistently selfish character who never shows us he has anything to offer Dani. He doesn't value her. The village, on the other hand, does value her and they can give back to her at the end of the film what she lost at the beginning.
Awesome review, as always! Loved this movie. Can’t wait to see what Ari does next!!!
I adore your reviews. Thank you for posting.
I love that you mentioned the exaggerated features among the cult members. It was unsettling in a subtle way.
That's wild how you describe your feelings as "queasy." That's the exact feeling I had while watching "Old" by M. Night. Some of the topics they touch on are visceral, and there's always this feeling of openness, and claustrophobia occurring simultaneously. The ending was not my cup of tea, but the meat of the movie was quite impressive. My feeling was like having an itch that I can't scratch. This sort of outside force that has dominion and control over a somewhat innocent group of people with medical issues not within their control.
Been really looking forward to your review on this one
I finally watched this film and don't understand the hype. It was gratuitous and intentionally trying to shock, which has the opposite effect on me.
I enjoyed it, off course if you didn't like Hereditary then don't check it out. Hereditary is such a depressing film....and I love it! So far I'm impressed with Ari Aster's work.
I didn't like this as much as Hereditary, nor was I as traumatized as I was from watching Hereditary. Having said that, I still liked it. It was a very slow burn (no pun intended on the end) and those tend to be some of my favorite movies. Ari Aster has some very fucked up thoughts in his head, and I love that he's able to perfectly capture them on film. Hereditary was the better movie, but this was much more pleasant to look at.
Just like Hereditary felt like a two hour long panic attack, you said it best when you said that this felt like a two and a half hour trip gone wrong. You should post a question in the link below. Letterboxd is having a Q & A with Ari Aster, and you can post a question for him on the site that he might answer.
letterboxd.com/crew/list/the-ari-aster-qa/
I too thought Hereditary had some funny moments. Spoilers- I always thought Gabriel Byrne's character's cause of death is just a pun on the phonetic pronunciation of the actor's last name. I might be crazy on that one though. The stoner friend texts the main character got were pretty well done too.
Also when the main character is checking out a seated derriere of the girl sitting in front of him, that's basically a good chunk of the Highschool experience for guys in two seconds. Very rarely has that been so concisely expressed.
I got the sense that the Swedish friend set everyone up so that they all would go to the village, especially Dani. I believe he murdered Dani's sister and parents.
I felt like the film was primarily about Dani's search for connection, and how she eventually finds it through this cult. The cult members seemed to be all about community and connection to one another, which is something Dani desperately needed. She didn't feel like anyone understood her pain (I've felt like that), and her alienation was compounded by her aloof boyfriend (I've also been in a situation where I didn't break up with someone due to her going through a very hard time). A bad situation all around, perfectly setting up Dani to be inducted properly into this ultra-empathic fertility-cult.
Definitely not my favorite film, lol, but Ari Aster is obviously a very talented filmmaker. I also didn't gush over Hereditary. My brother said it was the best horror film of '18, but despite some great acting and well-filmed scenes, it just didn't do it for me. Still, a filmmaker I'll follow.
Would love to see your impression of Christian Petzold's new film TRANSIT. What he does with adapting the film's source novel and how he ingeniously changes it is brilliant. The best new film I've seen so far in 2019.
Yah. I've been wanting to see it. His film, Phoenix is one of my favorite films of the decade. Thanks for reminding me. :)
Excellent review. Don't know what else to say about this film other than it's a rare cinematic achievement. Gratitude.
Thanks for your review. Very interesting vocabulary you use. 🙏
I love your videos!! I literally just got home from seeing this movie; I really, really loved it. Excited to hear your thoughts!!
I loved this film. While I agree it missed some Marks, it definitely landed in some areas as well and the film as a whole is beautiful. Definitely need another watch.
I didn't like Midsommar. Poor characterisation, a lack of tension in the second half. The cliff/hammer scene was just sensationalism. The best part was the hilarious sex scene. Hereditary is a lot better.
That’s a dumb opinion.
Midsommar was okay. It was just too long.
You're looking forward to the extended cut, right?
Hi there. Sorry for the sidetrack. Just wondered why, despite my subscribing to your channel (and clicking the bell), your vids don't turn up as recommendations on the main youtube dashboard. I guess it's a youtube thing, and maybe due to number of subscribers, but thought maybe it might be a thing (like a setting or something) you've not done. I don't know. I'm not a youtube expert. Your stuff deserves to be seen and recommended. I watch a lot of film stuff, and, having discovered your channel just last week ('cos of the Midsommar review - I damn love the film), and having binge-watched a random number of your videos since, I'm surprised to find that when I go on the main dashboard there's no recommendations. There is for all the other channels I watch regularly. So, that's it. I mean, a random viewer like me, with little income can't do much to support financially, but, your having become one of personal favourite, most intelligent and heartfelt film critics (mostly your work of the last couple of years), I thought the least I can do is draw attention to the fact that your not work here is not getting as much attention as I think it possibly could. I'm guessing, considering the quality of critique, you should, and probably will, get a huge boost to your subscriptions in the future. But folks need to be reminded of your presence on the main page. Hope you get what I mean. Thanks for the smarts. Best of luck in your endeavours. And cheers from Blighty. :)
awesome review - I want to catch this movie in theaters (if it's still out)
This movie will come out until September here in Mexico, what the heck? I guess I'll wait it out for another 2 months.
another influence on Midsommar is Shirley Jackson's The Lottery.
I finally saw this yesterday. Not sure how i feel about it, i for sure admired the film making style and Florence Pugh was great, also the cinematography was beautiful. But there were some scenes that were very disturbing
Have you seen Under the Silver Lake? I think you would enjoy it
nice discussion as always
i wish i liked this film. i feel like it doesn’t really consider cultural norms, but it instead it presents situations in which it demands you be provoked whilst ignoring that anyone, characters or audience, have a brain (also because the abstraction is usually never pointed to reflect an actual state of mind). this is just my two cents though !
Has Maggie done a video on Wicker Man?
This movie means a lot to me bc it got me into the world of movies and inspired me a lot. Also it was the best cinema experience I ever had haha
Great review. Subbed
an extremely powerful movie about how tribal groups can exist in a vacuum and that the rituals can develop into horrific events that reflect on how the past pagan activities can er emerge quickly in modern society if they are hidden away - in this case to a remote setting in scandanavia - the metaphor of it being symbolic of a bad acid trip is a strong links with the images of a hippy style community, cleansed in white robes, indulging in drugs to assist in free expression
I like you, and your reviews 💛
I absolutely loved the first half of this movie, but once the disturbing rituals started to happen I felt like it became really predictable.
It wasn’t trying to be unpredictable, and it was predictable in a good way because the characters’ fates are inevitably obvious, but how they get there is not entirely predictable, so the film builds up suspense that way.
What's a shame is it does such a great job framing a believable dysfunctional relationship where you can really side with either character, and I love that subtlety of like "yeah, he's deuchy but he's not a total dick, he tries but doesn't love her anymore, and she does have issues and needs a lot of emotional care" , so it's nobody's fault really, just they're not right for each other. And I was so gripped by this greatly thought provoking relationship and really wanted to see how the couple dynamic would develop, that it was just a massive disappointment when they get to the village and Cristian goes full asshole mode, like "nah, it's cool they kill their elders, go have fun while I take some notes". That totally killed the compelling humanity of what they had set up! And from then on it's all weird shit with no emotional core cos halfway thru the movie they're basically not a couple anymore, so that undermines the emotional tension needed for the finale to really hit you in the feels. I was literally laughing at the bizarre rituals by the end and I think it's cos I had no reason to be invested in the protagonists. I think that's its only real flaw. Oh, and the fact the festival is an awful time and not a very appealing greeting card for new recruits, even someone as damaged as Dani. Other than that, it's terrific: amazing mastery of tone, trippy cinematography, phenomenal depiction of grief by Pugh, and a great look into manipulation.
I want to see this movie but it didn't come to my theater which kind of sucked so I've been waiting patiently for your version of the the review so when it comes out on video now I'll be watching it cuz I like your reviews on movies the very truthful cuz I did not like hereditary good shock value but very slow paced too slow paced for my taste but this one looks way more interesting Midsommar
excellent review of the issues that are thrown into the melting pot as you view it - once past the horror that emerges i think that it opens one's thinking about the role of tribes, the rules that groups adopt, the morality that tribes develop, the prejudice that outsiders bring to a group plus of course sexuality, procreation, ceremony - great movie - great review
Keep posting your reviews in my arthouse group, and have also just posted this as I watched last night. I too needed to sleep on it lol. Please search for ‘Pure Cinema’ on Facebook...you’d go down da bomb girl!
People entering my room, okay? Checking the porn I watch. And then calling their mates. And their mates chatting to random people. An algorithm I wrote back in Liverpool. That's what I'm saying when I'm saying computers have limits, miss.
So on point
Hey maggie have you seen Tarantinos new film yet
Was Ari identifying with Dani? I'm not sure about that. I think Dani comes off as very needy and self absorbed. This movie felt more like a condemnation of her.
i've never clicked on a video so fast before
i didnt like hereditary very much, but midsommar was really enjoyable.
It had some elements of being a good film, but ultimately it's a real turd. The story was the obvious problem, beyond stupid, and far too long. I was impressed with the lead actress, she was a real bright spot. Midsommar reminded me a little of another wacky film, Kevin Smith's Tusk. Horrible movie.
Now, I have lost quite a bit of interest in modern horror films. I'm probably going to skip that Light House movie, and will definitely not watch that Antlers movie.
Light house and Antler films ; I have not heard of them ?!
The bad in this movie FAR outweighs the good, unfortunately, but it is certainly better than Hereditary by leaps and bounds. Also borrows far too much and too blatantly from its influences instead of handling it more tactfully and respectfully. It was a decent attempt but also just had a lot of tropes and predictability that did not work for me as a viewer.
I SUPER Subbed after watching this. Because THIS, is Awesome!🤗
Ari Aster & Jordan Peele are completely reinventing horror, into authentic horror. I'm thankful for them! In the movie they show a brief type of tapestry where two girls marry or get together in some kind of ritual. I thought that red haired girl wanted to be with Dani, but it went a different path. For a horror film it was very interesting and kept you guessing. I LOVED it!
Moral of midsommar story:
Don't be a typical GUY dipshit & treat your girlfriend like trash...or else, karma!
Forgetting your girlfriends birthday. After years together? Really?!😳😣
I thought it worked better as a black comedy than a horror film.
it would have been waaay better if the smart black guy tried to lead an escape. he would have known they were in big trouble
@Catharsis He did know what was coming. He's the one that set them all up.
Great film! But, see it twice? No, thanks. This film left me emotionally empty as well (well, at least for this evening).
okay.....ive tried every avenue possible toget your attention in hopes you will review pontypool, lol. its cool if you dont, but if you could let me know youve seen it please......then ican stop trying.lol.please?
I resisted leaving a like.
wow. i'm confused that you thought mother was a comedy and that aronofsky takes himself too seriously, yet you found this film compelling.
i was laughing the whole time. this film was a cartoon. poor christian was manipulated from start to finish. he had zero choices in this caricature.
ari aster's remake of wicker man would be right at home in the hands of m knight shyamalan.
the lighthouse i liked way more then midsommar 7.5 out of10.
Hi Maggie!
My name is Eddie Green. I sent you a DM on both Facebook and Instagram. I would love to have you on my podcast as a featured guest! All the details are in the message. Hope to hear from you soon!
EG
♡♡♡♡♡
It's boring and pretentious, meandering, self-indulgent and ultimately, dully obvious. But I do appreciate the style--the cinematography and production design. But it's meaningless. And Us is just awful.
Marry me 💍❤️
Can’t wait to see it again so I de- sensitize me
Next time you grieve, and grief is an integral aspect if not the most important aspect of this film. Have someone tell you that your "brand" of grief is funny. See how you feel about it then.
I know grief more than you know. Don't even go there.
Well then, you wouldn't think the depiction of it was funny...
The great thing about art, is that you can explore pain in a multitude of ways, including humor. To dismiss all ironic humor as offensive or insensitive misses the point completely. Sometimes it can cause themes of grief and pain to become more palpable, as it was here, for me at least.
@@deepfocuslens Honestly I do understand what you are saying. However, I saw not a single frame in that film that I regarded as funny. Now, there were jump scare addicted teenagers in the crowd that laughed through the whole film. Perspective I think makes all the difference. Thematically for me if there was humor in there because of the subject matter, it missed its mark. There are all kinds of funny. Fart joke juvenile funny, dude I cannot believe we did that funny, and even hey I cannot believe we just came that close to getting killed funny. From light comedy, to dark humor and irony and all variations and combinations in between. I simply agree to disagree in this instance. Honestly this is the first review of yours I have ever seen. You may have another that I whole heartedly agree with. Sincerely, H.
I could be wrong, but films today doesn't have any good morals; the bf didn't need to die...just break up already. Idiots without brains will adore these kind of films. I still don't understand why Dani's sister killed herself and her parents.
The movie is incredible predictable, you can see what's going to happen from a mile, everything is spoiled through out the stupid interaction between the tourists and the cult. The acting is very mediocre (the characters and dialogs are full cliches), the direction is average too although the camera work and filming place were ok. Overrated movie.
This movie is very average
Thanks for the laugh! Your idiosyncrasies are getting too predictable.
Hereditary was a beautiful looking, tedious, pretentious mess.