Written by Tom Moore
Last year, writer/director Ari Aster shocked and horrified audiences with his feature debut, Hereditary. It was a film that dealt with family grief in a terrifying new way and boasted a unique style and a performance from Toni Collette that was awards-worthy. Personally, I appreciated Aster’s use of slow-burning tension that leads to a perfectly heart-pumping finale and his dark cinematography that made each corner the characters turn incredibly tense. That’s why when news dropped that Aster’s newest project, Midsommar, was coming this summer, I felt a palpable excitement and curiosity as to what new nightmares he would bring to the big screen.
While we’ve been shown what the film is generally about through a teaser, with the new, we can finally get a full glimpse as to what we’re in for with Midsommar and it looks to be vastly different than what we saw with Hereditary. When asked about the film, Aster has described Midsommar as a brutal breakup film and that’s on full display, with the trailer finally delving into some of the character and story details. The trailer follows struggling couple Dani (Florence Pugh) and Christian (Jack Reynor) as they travel to Sweden with some of Christian’s friends to attend a strange festival. Upon arriving, things seem relatively normal, but they eventually seem to take a dark and bloody turn.
What makes this trailer so perfect is how it’s very particular about what details it reveals and the mysteries it still leaves for viewers to experience when they see the film. We know that Dani and Christian are suffering some issues in their relationship and Christian is possibly looking to end things, but we aren’t really sure what’s wrong. We are told that Dani has gone through a recent traumatic experience, but we don’t know what it is. We are even introduced to the idea that Christian’s friend who brought them there might not have told them everything that’s happening, but we still aren’t sure what details he’s left out.
I absolutely love this cast as Pugh and Reynor are joined by Will Poulter and William Jackson Harper and all of these actors are truly great in their respective projects, but from what’s seen thus far, Midsommar will hopefully put them on a pedestal that’s worthy of their talents. What’s really an important takeaway from this new trailer is the distinctly different look and style that Aster brings.
As Poulter’s Josh begins to question why the sky is blue at 9 P.M. and he is given a response along the lines of “this is what 9 P.M. is like here,” chills ran down my back and I could just tell that we’re in for something special. Once they arrive to the festival, there’s a clear lighting and style change as the strongly bright lighting, that’s almost burning to see, sets a dream-like and whimsical. The flowery exterior, the movements of the white dress-wearing festival-goers, and even some of the shots we see of the landscape offer this idea of a place that, as Christian describes, is like another world. Aster doesn’t forget to remind us what we are in for a nightmare rather than a pleasant dream, though, as the sounds of screams blend with shots of bear dissection, ritualistic sacrifices, and drug-fueled moments of fear.
So, while there are still plenty of questions that need to be answered and mysteries left unsolved from the latest trailer for Midsommar, it’s probably better they stay that way until the film springs into theater on July 3rd.
