Midsommar (2019)

Directed by Ari Aster. Starring Florence Pugh, Jack Reynor, Vilhelm Blomgren, Will Poulter, William Jackson Harper, Hampus Hallberg, Archie Madekwe, Ellora Torchia, Anna Åström. [R]

Following up his take-notice debut, Hereditary, director Astor tackles folk-horror alongside an emotional/spiritual awakening parable. Reeling from a family tragedy, Pugh (in an effective performance) joins her emotionally-distant boyfriend, Reynor, and three of his buddies on a trip to Sweden to take part in a midsummer festival taking place at Blomgren’s ancestral home commune. Aster’s mastery of subtle tension-building and lingering ideas and imagery are on full display here once more; not without its flaws, but this movie sticks to the ribs and gives the viewer plenty of things to ponder and itch about afterward, as well as numerous indelible film frames that are hard to shake. The combination of hallucinogenics and gaslighting only makes the sensation all the more eerie and discomforting for Pugh and her crew. Long but never dull, the main criticism with the movie is in the somewhat underwhelming wrap-up, especially considering how close it comes to simply ripping off another well-known folk-horror movie (no spoilers, but it’s not hard to guess). Still, while you may walk out feeling a little let down, don’t be surprised if the film’s ideas and allegories keep filling your head for days after.

84/100