Writer and director Ari Aster's prompt followup to his hugely successful first feature-length movie, Hereditary, proved somewhat more divisive than his debut and still inspires debate amongst horror movie fans, and general audience members, as to whether it does or doesn't deserve its still very high level of critical acclaim.
The numerous conflicting opinions can be very confusing to newcomers to the movie. So, with this in mind, let's break down the arguments for and against the movie being worthy of its modern classic status to try and better determine whether Midsommar really is as good, or bad, as some people say that it is.
10 Best: Attention to Detail
Midsommar is always trying to be quite the trip and it often succeeds via a number of deliberately disorientating tactics and insidious frights lurking in the background.
The character's descent into drug-induced hysteria is helped greatly along by tiny details like pupil dilation and more subtle flashes of horrific imagery give the movie an unsettling atmosphere.
9 Worst: Bad Genre Clichés
With so many triumphs in execution, Midsommar should logically be a certified home run with horror movie fans but the plot has as many tired tropes and clichés propping it up as it does innovative ideas.
Conventional characterization within the movie is a subject within itself, which we'll get to later, but the hackneyed structure alone is enough to give a genre fan a headache. No self-respecting horror aficionado was surprised when the movie's only non-white couple was the first to die and it's disappointing, to say the least, every time it happens.
8 Best: Good Cinematography
Ari Aster reteamed with Hereditary's director of photography, Pawel Pogorzelski, on Midsommar and the two maintained the high standard that their debut together set.
The relatively limited environment is never dull to look at and Pogorzelski demonstrates a clear eye for beauty in the natural landscapes of the movie.
7 Worst: It's Very Pretentious
So many of the movie's finer points simply aren't enjoyable in any way for certain people because they come off as unnecessarily weighty and pretentious.
The real damning quality of this is that Midsommar is always a genre movie yet often comes off as being ashamed to be identified as such, finding ways to trick the audience into thinking that it has a level of complexity and importance that transcends its conventional gore and stereotypes.
6 Best: It’s Grounded in Realism
Similar to Hereditary, Midsommar is constantly mindful of ways that it can make its outlandish story seem grounded in a relatably real world.
Practical effects and smart set building go a long way in bringing the nightmarish qualities in Midosommar to life in an impactful way.
5 Worst: It Isn’t Believable
So much of Midsommar's realism feels pointless when factoring it against the unbelievable nature of the story.
A staple of unoriginal horror screenplays is characters who seem to have absolutely no regard for their own safety and it's a convenient trope that the movie's characters stick to even after watching a gruesome murder happen right in front of them.
4 Best: Exploration of Mental Health Issues
Midsommar's story grapples with a number of mental health issues that the movie takes seriously and explores through events in the plot.
Chronic depression, trauma, emotional dependency, abusiveness, and communal support are touched on by the story and the relationships between the characters.
3 Worst: Annoying Characters
While irritating main characters are no strangers to the horror genre, particularly within the types of horror movies that Midsommar so clearly emulates, the basic fact remains that it's much easier to write annoying characters than it is to write likable ones.
The movie's inconsiderate students frequently stray beyond examinations of toxicity and into the realm of convenient jerks who the audience can root for the grisly death of.
2 Best: Performances
Though many of the characters may be run of the mill, the acting is far from it with even the most one-dimensional characters have impressive performances devoted to them.
Florance Pugh's central performance, obviously, takes the most praise from critics and fans alike but the entire ensemble never appears anything other than totally committed to the script, no matter how ridiculous the scenario may be.
1 Worst: It’s a Slasher Movie, Only Twice as Long
So many of Midosommar's detractors site the length as a key grievance that they have with the movie and it's not an invalid thing to point out.
The morbidity of the slasher movie is atoned for in the eyes of fans due to the fact that the subgenre embraces its place as entertainment. Midsommar, however, possesses an epic running time befitting a movie with far more intricate ideas and characters. A fact that isn't helped by the movie's repetitive insistence of mapping out events in its own plot before they happen.
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