Don’t Watch Midsommar.
The curse of the horror fan is that over time, it becomes harder and harder for a film to make an impact on you. Over the years I have gone from being too afraid to look under my bed sheets after watching The Grudge for the first time, to actively listening to horror podcasts to fall asleep. Whether it’s a lack of good horror to discover, or just pure desensitisation, there comes a point for every horror fan where you just aren’t scared anymore. I came to this point in my horror journey a while back, and although I could watch something and know whether it was well done or just a pale imitation of a money maker, I was without that uncomfortable feeling. That sinking in your gut, the feeling of being somehow tainted after watching something.
That is until I discovered a very specific sub genre. The horror of the family, the tribe, and the cult. There are some fantastic films worth noting within this branch, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Cannibal Holocaust, Apostle, and House of 1000 Corpses are all films that I genuinely struggle to watch. Fear is a very personal thing so I understand if others can watch these with ease. For me the fear comes from their dedication. This is devotion without empathy. These groups will do anything for the good of the tribe, the good of the family, the good of the harvest. With a lone psycho you might have a chance, but with an entire group of people who care more about the unit than they do the individual, you are doomed to die. They have lost the human in order to become one, and reap the benefits.
With this in mind, I was extremely excited for Ari Aster’s 2019 release Midsommar. Aster had already been a breath of fresh air, and his previous feature Hereditary is a film that I will slide into conversation for as long as people still talk to me, and after that I’ll just print it on a t-shirt or something. So going into his new work I had my hopes high. I wasn’t expecting Hereditary 2: Electric Boogaloo, but I knew that if that film was anything to go by, this would be worth the watch. Ultimately, it was.
But don’t watch Midsommar.
Watch The Wicker Man.
But god, please. Do not watch the Nicolas Cage one.
When it comes to cult films, Midsommar is oozing with influence from Robin Hardy’s 1973 feature. These two films go through the same journey, outsiders come into the environment. They are there to gather information, and in their search discover the strange, and killer traditions of these places, ultimately ending in either giving in to this new way of life, or a brutal end for the good of the people.
Midsommar is not without its merits. Aster has a clear vision when it comes to his films, and the thought and detail are extraordinary. Taking time to study the shots, the imagery in the background, the meaning of it all, will bring to light some metaphors and symbolism you never would’ve known were there.
But so what?
There’s a strange superiority when it comes to film, think of those people who have Pulp Fiction posters framed in their bedroom and you’ll understand what I mean. When you boil art down to its original purpose, it was to entertain. If a film, or a song, or a photo do nothing but entertain you, why is that so bad? Why should an audience member be scrambling across the internet or re watching something with one eye on the background, in order for the film to be good? This is the downfall of Midsommar. Speak to anybody that has watched it, and they’re either unimpressed (especially after Hereditary) or their eyes beam as they explain all the hidden things you’ll miss, and all the meaning that they saw some guy on Youtube explain.
So what happens when you take this away? You’re left with The Wicker Man, or at least, an imitation of it. The difference is The Wicker Man doesn’t hide anything. You can watch this film and understand it from the get go. It is elegant in its simplicity.
Understandably it is hard to have a “new” idea anymore. Every story has been told, re-told, set in space, told through song. It’s just been done. Horror especially has fallen victim to this, and in a world full of cheap jump scares and girls crawling all over the place a new kind of horror was born. In this realm we have The VVitch, Susperia, and of course Aster’s creations. This new wave of horror is invigorating. It has made a home for itself with dynamic narrative and character development. It is the people of the story that matter. As I stated in my previous piece, this is what makes good horror, the things around the threat. These are the things that are integral.
Midsommar doesn’t quite get this new style of horror right. It depends far more on the aesthetic of this style than it does its own story. It feels more like a “high art” piece than it does a film. It has the feel of a film that men will use in a bar to try and impress you, citing meaning and metaphor, but not the narrative itself, because so what? Yes we are given a tragic character to feel for through Dani, but other than the tragedy that surrounds her, there’s not much else going on. The other members of this group of outsiders are so 2 dimensional you honestly don’t care if they live or die, and with a slow burner like this, there is plenty of time to make them far more dynamic than they are. The same can be said for the inhabitants of this village. I understand that the real story here is about Dani and her partner Christian. It is about grief and loss, about family and relationships and what they mean. I love that there’s more to this film than just the simple “cult out for blood” ideal, but for a film that’s over 2 hours along, I’d expect more character exploration. Admittedly upon watching the directors cut, there are some scenes I feel should’ve been kept that would seriously have made this point more apparent, and honestly? Made you care more.
The Wicker Man excels with its characters. You follow Sergeant Howie. Granted he’s not an overly likeable character, but he is explored through this film. You understand his morals, his priorities, and you see him tempted and conflicted by this new place. The islanders are given more time to be explained and explored. We get to know the figureheads of this society. They and Howie have a much more dynamic relationship. I understand that ultimately these two films have a different outcome for their leading role. Howie is in battle with these inhabitants, whereas Dani seems to belong here, she is wanted, she is special, but the reason for this is unclear. Why she matters to these people and their ceremony isn’t overtly obvious, whereas Howie’s significance for the island is clear. This ambiguity doesn’t help Midsommar, if I am to feel something, it was lost on me, because I didn’t know these characters and I shouldn’t have to re watch with a critical eye in order to make it happen.
Admittedly Midsommar does have its moments. Attempting to keep this spoiler free means I cannot go into specifics, but there are scenes in which the gravity of the situation these outsiders are in is fully brought to life. As mentioned previously the good of the family, and the good of the harvest take priority with incredibly disturbing actions as a result. The Wicker Man does also present the ideologies of the island’s inhabitants, but it does not require gore and graphic scenes in order to do it. You can argue that these elements make Midsommar more of a horror film than The Wicker Man, but I believe you’re over-simplifying horror by doing so. (Saw is a far superior horror film to its descendants, where gore reigns supreme.) The lack of graphic scenes throughout the body of The Wicker Man make its final moments so much more soul wrenching. Midsommar has done the worst it can do before its even half way through. This plus the lack of character exploration? The climax loses its impact, and you just care less. Despite the major familiarity between the two endings. It is the journey to this ending that makes all the difference.
There is something to be said of the camerawork in these two films. Granted Midsommar is wildly superior in that respect, it was always going to be. It was made in 2019, whereas The Wicker Man was released in 1973. It had a much larger budget, and it of course had Aster creating his vision. Midsommar is a beautiful film. I do believe however The Wicker Man uses its camera in the right moments in a much better way. These films end almost identically, but during the ending of The Wicker Man, the camera is with Howie, we see what he sees, as he sees it. This final scene is gut wrenching. It gives me that disturbed unclean feeling that is so rare to find as a horror veteran. Midsommar’s ending, while stunning, doesn’t evoke much feeling, the fourth wall is very much in place. This may be intentional and knowing Aster’s brilliance and the thought he puts into his work it probably is. Regardless when the credits begin to roll, you don’t have much to say. It’s just over. If art’s intention is to make you feel and to entertain you, this has failed.
Despite all this, I do really love Midsommar, but this is a film that requires more than just the casual viewing in order to mean something, in order to have an impact. So I implore you, watch The Wicker Man, it gives you everything that Midsommar gives you, and it gives you it first time around.
Horror is changing, and I welcome it. There is a whole world of new things to be explored. The passion behind these films can be felt in every shot and every musical score. The time of the cheap jump scare is over. There are new fears and threats waiting to be shown to us, but the story always has to live.
Thoughts are my own, images are not.
