After a family tragedy, a young American couple joins some friends at a Midsommar festival in a remote Swedish village. What begins as a carefree summer holiday takes a sinister turn when the insular villagers invite their guests to partake in festivities that grow increasingly unnerving and viscerally disturbing. From the visionary mind of Ari Aster (Hereditary) comes this dread-soaked cinematic fairy tale where a wolf of darkness unfolds in broad daylight.
You can read our review of the incredibly unsettling film here.
I’m here to tell you about the special features on the home video that you’re almost definitely going to buy if you enjoyed this film.
The first feature is “Let the Festivities Begin: Manifesting Midsommar”. Here is where Ari and various cast members break down the story and give us a behind the scenes look at the making of the film. Don’t expect the film to be explained here, because it won’t be.
It is fascinating to get a look inside Ari Aster’s mind. You get a small glimpse when you watch his films, but this behind the scenes look lets you see how exact and deliberate each and every movement of every actor is because Aster has made it that way. Every costume has specific runes in the design for each character. It is sure to be a detail that most people overlook, and yet Aster felt it was important to include them anyway. Its magic really is in the details.
The second feature is a “Bear in a Cage” promo, which is filmed like a child’s toy commercial. Despite the bear being a small detail at the start of the movie, it ends up being important in the end, so the promo is pretty cute. They also give you a website address to purchase your own bear in a cage toy. I took the time to look it up and the bear in a cage toy is very much a real thing, though sold out online already. Prepare to pay a pretty penny on eBay if you plan on purchasing one.
The third and final feature is just trailers from the start of the film. Chances are that you skipped past them to get to the movie’s main menu, so they are available here in case you wanted to go back. That being said, YouTube exists, so I’m not sure why you would put the movie in just to watch them.
As I said, if you enjoyed the film, you’re going to buy it anyway. The bonus features are just that, a bonus to another amazing film by Ari Aster.
