Midsommar, a 2019 thriller film by Ari Aster, is partially based on the real Midsommar festival celebrated in Sweden, but includes violent and pagan cult activities not found in the actual tradition. The film revolves around a mysterious group of Swedes called the Hårga, who live off the land and follow centuries-old ceremonies and rituals. The Hårga is a mysterious group of Swedes who live off the land and follow centuries-old ceremonies and rituals.
The film explores the Swedish pagan mythology and separates fact from fiction, including runes, ritual sacrifice, and more. The story revolves around the Hårga, a mysterious group of Swedes who live off the land and follow centuries-old ceremonies and rituals. Some of the midsummer traditions in Midsommar are rooted in reality, such as dancing around a giant maypole and wearing flowers in one’s hair. However, some of the actual practice is just myth, according to Wikipedia.
The film draws from real traditions of the Midsummer Festival but adds horror elements and revolves around the breakup of a toxic relationship. Much of the horror in Midsommar comes from the ancient Pagan history of the festival, but it is not based on one exact group. Instead, the cult depicted in Midsommar is a combination of elements from several different pagan and religious traditions.
In conclusion, Midsommar is a film that explores the Swedish pagan mythology and the horror elements that come with it. While the film does not directly resemble the actual Midsummer festival, it provides a unique perspective on the Swedish culture and traditions.
📹 Midsommar: The History of The May Queen and the Hårga | Horror History
LET THE FESTIVITIES BEGIN. The May Queen, a symbol of fertility and growth, becomes the center of a disturbing pagan ritual in …
Are any of the rituals in Midsommar real?
Midsommar is a film that recreates the traditions of the Midsummer Festival, a traditional celebration of John the Baptist’s birth. The film inverts these traditions, creating a terrifying story about breaking a social contract. The film follows Dani, a young girl who feels neglected by her father, as she finds herself accepted by the community. The crowning of a “May Queen” is essential for the festival, representing the community’s responsibility to ensure a successful harvest.
The film also inverts these traditions, with Swedish girl Maja casting a love spell on Christian, forcing him to fall in love with her. Dani’s heartbreak and rage inspire her to sacrifice Christian in the film’s iconic ending. Midsommar serves as a warning about the dangers of impeding upon tradition, as Mark is tricked and skinned by the community after urinating on a sacred artifact, and Josh is murdered after trying to take photographic evidence of ancient texts. The film explores the consequences of disrespecting traditions held sacred by a community, highlighting the dangers of impeding upon them.
Was Dani brainwashed in Midsommar?
Midsommar is a film that effectively portrays the effects of cult indoctrination tactics. The film begins with the attestupa, a prehistoric Nordic practice where elderly people threw themselves to their deaths when they couldn’t support themselves or assist in a household. The group witnesses this practice, and the Hagra, who are part of it, are shown to be good people.
After witnessing the attestupa, the group stays to help Josh, one of Christian’s friends, finish his thesis on the Hagra. Christian decides to write his thesis on the Hagra, angering Josh and splitting up the group. Dani attempts to leave, but is intercepted by Pelle, who explains his connection to the Hagra and questions Christian’s love for Dani. Pelle is the first to acknowledge Christian’s horribleness to Dani and is intrinsically connected to the Hagra.
The Hagra are shown to be good in our eyes, telling Dani the truth and offering comfort. This is cathartic and validating, as Dani has just suffered an unimaginable loss with no support system. However, there are subtleties in the conversation, as Dani witnesses a couple violently die, and her feelings are twisted away from her feelings of guilt. The film serves as a powerful representation of the power of cult indoctrination tactics.
Is there a message behind Midsommar?
Midsommar is a two-and-a-half-hour film that follows a woman’s emotional journey towards emancipation from a toxic relationship. The film explores the bleak decision to kill someone for cheating, but also highlights the terrible relationship Dani has with her boyfriend Christian (Jack Reynor), who dismisses her concerns about her family and barely helps her through the grieving process. Despite the horror clichés, the film has a happy ending.
Where did the Midsommar tradition come from?
Swedish Midsummer celebrations date back to agrarian times, marking the arrival of summer and fertility. People dressed as ‘green men’, decorated their houses and farm tools with foliage, and raised leafy maypoles to dance around. Midsummer was primarily for young people, but it was also celebrated in industrial communities in central Sweden. Mill employees were given a feast of pickled herring, beer, and schnapps.
Midsummer bonfires have been lit around Europe since the 6th century AD, mainly in southern Sweden. Young people also visited holy springs, where they drank healing water and played games and danced, as a reminder of John the Baptist’s baptism of Christ in the River Jordan.
What is the religion of Midsommar?
Midsommar is a horror film directed by Ari Aster, which explores the Pagan rituals of a Swedish cult called the Hårga. The film follows a group of graduate students who find themselves at their friend Pelle’s traditional midsummer festival. The film features a world filled with mystery, wonder, and hallucinogens, creating an unsettling atmosphere charged with Pagan and Swedish symbolism. Aster’s work is not entirely horror, but he researches every aspect of his projects with topics on traditions, folklore, and religion.
The main characters, Dani, Christian, Josh, and Mark, become entranced by the Pagan cultural practices and the upcoming May Queen ceremony. Aster’s attention to detail makes him a powerful director and creator in the horror genre, with wall-to-wall symbols, dining manners, death and birth traditions, and a ceremony celebrating the May Queen.
Why did Dani smile at the end of Midsommar?
In Midsommar, the film explores the ambiguity of the protagonist’s past, allowing viewers to empathize with her struggles. The film uses the ambiguity of the story to create a cathartic moment, as the commune emotionally validates her without any support. The film effectively generates empathy, as it forces viewers to support Dani, who is isolated from her partner and has few friends. The end brings relief for Dani as she finds people who validate her in a way we cannot. However, the film also highlights the emotional manipulation by the Härga, which manipulates Dani and the viewers.
What is the death ritual in Midsommar?
The 2019 horror film Midsommar by Ari Aster uses the term “ättestupa” to describe a ritual suicide practice where elderly cult members, believed to be in a state of desperation, throw themselves off a high cliff at the age of 72. This practice is rooted in the collective memory of the treatment of old people in bygone days, where old people were believed to have fallen to their deaths off a cliff, either voluntarily jumping or being pushed. The Ligurians, who were believed to be the ultimate solution to their old age, would throw their parents off a cliff when their parents were no longer useful due to their old age.
The concept of ättestupa has been a topic of interest in historical studies, with various sources referencing it in various contexts. In the film, the Ligurians are seen as a symbol of hope and hope, as they are believed to be the ones who will eventually die from their own insanity. The film also explores the concept of ättestupa in relation to modern practices of Döstädning, a practice that involves a person committing suicide to avoid a certain death.
Are the pagan rituals in Midsommar real?
Midsommar, a movie partially based on the real midsummer festival in Sweden, features violent and pagan cult activities not found in the actual tradition. The film serves as a pivotal plot element, with Dani’s travel companions disappearing and her boyfriend betraying her with a spell-induced affair. The festival ends with a ritualistic sacrifice, as Dani’s boyfriend Christian is burned alive by the Hårga cult at the festival’s climax.
Despite the fictional elements, Midsommar draws from real Swedish traditions, incorporating the Hårgalåten legend and featuring authentic Midsummer customs such as Maypole dancing and flower decorations. Swedish audiences did not find the film offensive.
The film also breaks away from reality and leans into disturbing horror movie elements through Midsommar’s ritual deaths. In Hårga, the characters learn that Midsummer events involve the ritualistic suicide of locals who reach the age of 72, the end of a seasonal life cycle. The festival symbolizes the toxic relationship between Dani and Christian, but the film does not feature human sacrifice.
Is Midsommar sacrifices real?
Midsommar is a film that explores the Swedish Midsummer Festival, a celebration that takes place between June 19 and June 25, and is associated with the birth of John the Baptist. The film follows Dani, a traveler who discovers her boyfriend having sex with a local girl after a carefully planned spell. Dani is crowned the “May Queen” after winning a Maypole dancing event, and her boyfriend Christian is burned alive by the Hårga cult at the festival’s climax.
The film symbolically parallels the toxic relationship between Dani and Christian, and while it is based on real Swedish traditions, it doesn’t feature human sacrifice. Ari Aster’s Midsommar combines ancient folklore with these traditions, but the real Midsommar festival is celebrated annually in Sweden. Aster’s narrative takes a more specific approach to make the communal traditions confuse American travelers, drawing from various spiritual movements that have nothing to do with Sweden.
What mental illness does Dani have in Midsommar?
The deaths of Dani’s parents and sister had a profound psychological impact on her, resulting in the development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Is there any truth to Midsommar?
Midsommar, a film about the summer solstice, features both real-life and fictional midsummer traditions. While some are based on real-life events like dancing around a giant maypole and wearing flowers in hair, others are more alarming and may be concocted for the film. For instance, a scene involves a young woman placing her pubic hair in a pie intended for Christian, which is a love spell. Journalist Po Tidholm and Jonas Engholm of the Nordic Museum’s Department of Cultural History helped distinguish fact from fiction.
📹 The Horror of MIDSOMMAR Explained
Written and Directed by Ari Aster, Midsommar follows a group of friends who travel to Sweden for a festival that occurs once every …
Dani’s behavior is the opposite of trauma dumping. She retreats to the bathroom or another secluded area almost every time before she breaks down. Even after the ättestupa ritual that must be highly traumatizing after what happened to her family, Christian routinely leaves her alone to tell his friend he’s going to copy his thesis topic. This dynamic even is an important plot point – the Harga expressing and sharing their pain is so meaningful to Dani because it allows her to finally grieve in front of others, making her the perfect victim for the cult. I’m pretty sure the Harga wanted Dani to see what Christian did, knowing perfectly well that it would look like cheating to her. Which it wasn’t, but it’s no surprise she thought that way after Christian’s previous behavior. Not only with Dani, but also with his friends, Christian constantly avoids conflicts with lies and last minute revelations, twists other people’s words to shift the blame and doesn’t show empathy for anyone but himself. He didn’t deserve his ultimate fate, but he should have listened to Dani when she begged him to leave.
Trauma dumping? She has a sister with a serious mood disorder, talking about that with your significant other and them supporting you emotionally is how a healthy relationship works.. If she was talking about her sister to the barista at the coffee shop, that would be inappropriate. Christian is emotionally immature and narcissistic, look at the way he treats Josh. This, however, does not make it ok for Dani to have him burnt alive and therapy would be a much better solution than joining a cult.
Nah, fam. Dani did not “trauma dump” (stupid term if you ask me) and see her boyfriend as an “emotional crutch” when she is going through the hardest times of her life. She wanted support and comfort from someone she trusts, loves. Instead this jerk doesn’t want to be there for her by ignoring, being half-assed, and forgetting her birthday
As a guy who loves Swedish folklore, this was super interesting to watch! I gotta say tho that the reason people put scissors under a child’s pillow in classic Swedish folklore is so the trolls won’t take the kid. Trolls are according to Swedish folklore afraid of steel and scissors are often made of steel, thus protecting the child.
In my opinion, Dani was more of a bonus to Pelle and the cult. She wasn’t meant to be going, and without her, the sacrifices would still be the same. Each one of the people chosen are bad people to the cult in some way, some more deserving than others. Mark and Josh are disrespectful to the cult in different ways. Simon and Connie refuse to see their way of life as a different view, and instead see them as wrong. Christian is a bad partner, as well as being generally apathetic and uninterested, even after he says he wants to start his Thesis on the festivities. Dani however never showed any disrespect towards the cult. Yes, she was physically upset at the atterstupa, and has been slowly breaking down, but that’s due to her own emotions. For example, Connie and Simon call the cult insane, while Dani never says anything disrespectful, and instead focuses on her own emotions towards death. She also listens to everyone when they talk about the cults view on life, instead of rejecting it outright. In this way, she could have theoretically either gone home alive, joined the cult, or been killed if she was disrespectful, outside of the temple. However Pelle has a good character judgement and managed to pick people close to someone needing a new family.
No, bruh. This is definitely a horror movie and that ending where she smiles does not mean it’s a good one. Her smile is practically manic. She’s forever lost to the cult. They took advantage of her in her most vulnerable moment. She’s not free from her trauma. The cult has just burried it all with their love bombing. The worst part of it all is that either she has no idea what she’s really gotten herself into or that she actually does know (I reckon it’s the latter as she seems to be quite sensitive to these things) but she’s just given herself up to the cult anyways.
The take on Christian here is not great. I don’t think he “cheated” on Dani when he was drugged. And he doesn’t deserve to be murdered. But he wasn’t a GOOD boyfriend trying his best. he was a deeply unsupportive, cowardly, and selfish partner – Dani reaching out to her partner for emotional support didn’t become “more legitimate” after the death of her family. Right off the bat, Christian doesn’t really care about her – even her legitimate hope for affection or care feels like an imposition. He forgets her birthday ffs
The inbred Oracle is actually a brilliant move for this movie. In Cosmic Horror, like Cthulhu, the entities encountered thrive on the mental break of their followers and victims. They drive people insane and are able to manipulate them completely once the mind breaks. We saw a similar thing in Hereditary but with more conventional demons as opposed to a bunch of squid and fish demons. But an alternative to breaking the mind to get the messages of the Eldritch beings or demons is to have someone that already has a mental defect. Their mind isn’t just open and receptive, it’s like giving these beings a summer condo to hang out in.
I interpreted the scissors as a twist on an old British superstition. Iron items, most notably shears, were sometimes placed around cradles to protect the babies from fairies. But I also like the interpretation of “cutting” away parent-child relations in favor of the cult, that makes a lot of sense!
One thing that confuses me is the fact that Pelle says that his parents died in a fire, implying that they were once sacrificed during one of the previous May Day celebrations, but one of the elders says that this kind of celebration happens every 90 years. I’m assuming that the festival happens every year but the sacrifices happen every 90 years. So, is that a script oversight? Or did Pelle’s parents died in an accidental fire?
It’s possible that the cult members names were picked for their specific meanings: . Both Inga and Ingemar reference a fertility deity . Ulf means ‘wolf’ and it’s possible he was the one who killed Josh, whilst dressed as Mark . Dani is greeted by Dagny, which means ‘new day’ . Pelle means ‘stone’, which could be a nod to his role as Dani’s support, or a link to Saint Peter who was responsible for spreading Christianity- the name ‘Pelle’ being a Scandinavian version of ‘Peter’ . Ruben is an odd one, as it could be a reference to the painter Reuben or his ability to “see” . Maja possibly means ‘mother’, a nod to her role in birthing the next generation Pure conjecture on my part ofc. ☺
The two elders who fell from the cliff were never in the yellow building at the end. Those two were seen being cremated a couple scenes later. I understood the last two people in the yellow building, who were shown being preserved with branches and flowers coming out of their hollowed torsos, were another couple of elders who died before age 72 of natural causes, etc. Prior to this season’s festivities.
I seriously don’t think this was only done every 100 years. Maybe all the activities are combined together every 100 years. But it feels like with every activity that happened, everyone has experienced previously at some stage in their lives so they knew exactly what needed to happen. And to ensure the knowledge of their cult is passed down correctly.
The scissors under the pillow is actually not uncommon among elderly. I’m from Germany and I think that this is known in Sweden and other european countries too. The open scissors are meant to protect against dark magic and Albs or the Nachtmahr (where the english word nightmare comes from – it is a creature that causes bad dreams and sucks your life energy, sometimes sucks other things like Incubi and Succubi). The scissors thing is folklore and superstition which is mostly left to be known by the elderly generation nowadays.
I find it interesting in the mushroom scene before they reach the village, Danni who was suffering from severe Depression and wasn’t right in mind handled the Mushrooms better than Mark and Christian until Mark brought up the word ‘Family’. Christian was rocking back and forth and Mark was freaking out at anything new to him where as Danni was perusal plants breath and move and didn’t seem even bothered. I didn’t bring up Josh since he was sitting there at a near laying position not talking. If he was having a bad trip he wasn’t saying anything.
The satchel of herbs mentioned at 30:58 is something that people use today, though I’m uncertain of how common it is. It’s not for cult initiation unfortunately hahaha. I think they are called “ritual satchels.” A family member made me one for my anxiety. It had a small stone and some different calming herbs like lavender in it. (lavender contains chemical compounds called terpenes, most notably linalool, that can make you feel relaxed) You hold the stone and sniff the satchl when you feel anxious or sad and it gives you a little boost of not-sad.
When I first saw Midsommar I thought someone from the village killed her parents and sister. I figured she grew up in the group and their parents pulled her and her sister out. Their parent’s house has foreshadow for stuff like the bear. The hose was duct taped to her sister. Next the member at the school pushes for her to go with. Then at the group she seems to recognize stuff on the walls and then becomes fluent in their language way too fast after the drink.
Good episode of horror history! This is one of my favourite horror films. The ättestupa is actually an old folk tale in the Nordic countries’ history. The elderly either voluntarily jumped or were forced to jump off a cliff when they became too old and sick to be productive community members. This also applied to animals like cattle. The midsommar festival is held between 20th to 26th on June, so it’s not always in the 25th.
I’m having an existential moment with what the director had to say about it all feeling like a breakup and revolving around a break up because when I watched this for the first time I was perusal it with my now ex bf of whom we were in the middle of a very turbulent break up… Needless to say, really fucked me up. ANYWAYS, great breakdown as usual CZ. 🙂
I also noticed that your tie reminded me of the carpet in The Shining, but when I rewatched the movie after perusal this, I saw that it is also the pattern in Dani’s bedsheet when she dreams of her party leaving her behind. Also, you forgot to mention the connection that Ylva has with Dani when she’s hyperventilating, looks at her, and then she “relaxes,” and then seems to be calmer than her friends about what had just transpired.
Well, my Tuesday evening just got a whole lot better. ^^ In Pegan tradition Beltane is similar to Harga. With a Maypole, a Fire festival, and Handfasting. Which is like a trial marriage of sorts. Where a couple gets together in front of a large bonfire and has their hands bound together with a ribbon. Then they pledge to stay together for one year and a day. After that year and day have come to pass, which is usually on the day of Baeltane, they deiced if they are going to stay together or if not then they simply part ways without any animosity towards each other. Also fun (if not kind of gross) fact! The ritual the red-haired girl does by putting her period blood in that one guy’s drink and the pubic hair in the pie is in fact blood magick. Often used by girls or women who are looking to put a love spell on the person they want to be with.
I get this vibe: Christian was too vain and too much of a coward to tell Dani the unflattering truth — that he was just completely uninterested in being emotional support, to the point of it being a deal-breaker — so he agreed to go on the trip to deliberately upset Dani. When she’s understandably confused and worried by his behavior, (even under the best of circumstances, when your boyfriend of four years decides on a whim to ditch your aniversary and leave the hemisphere for a month without talking it over, that’s pointedly, insultingly cold-blooded) it seems like he’s trying to turn it into a fight. Anything short of just rolling with whatever he wants is treated like an unreasonable ultimatum so he can make their breakup about something she did. Christian’s constant complaints and insults about Dani’s sister kind of condition her on how to act around him, always running and hiding when she needs to cry, trying not to think about her grief, or accomodating him and his friends no matter what. She’s willing to compromise anything and be completely uncomfortable to make him happy. He’s counting the minutes until he can abandon her without looking like a heel.
If there’s been 30 May Queens each one selected each Midsommar festival, and the Midsommar festival is celebrated every 90 years, that means the Harga cult had already existed for 2,700 years by the time Dannie and everyone else shows up for that year’s Midsommar festival. Damn. Although the whole May Queen each year thing kind of confused me. So that probably isn’t true.
i think its important to note that Christian got raped, he was so drugged out that he couldn’t have consented to doing anything. dani sees it as cheating because she doesn’t know how drugged he is. Also when Christian said that they have been dating for 3 1/2 years its referring to when he because dissatisfied with the relationship so he doest count that last 6 months because he has been mentally not in a relationship for the last bit.
I am so surprised and disgusted by this take on partnership, grieving such a colossal and sudden loss should ABSOLUTELY be something you share with someone you’re in a committed relationship with??? It makes my skin crawl thinking about how the ideological underpinnings of that whole perspective must creep into how non-fictional circumstances get interpreted…to let the man off the hook for his communication witholding and self centered, juvenile, indifferent disposition, while slandering Dani as if she’s being an aggressor for…going to her partner for very normal support….when he has not come clean about his feelings and just broken it off so she doesn’t even know something’s wrong….what a rousing display of empathy and healthy relationship expectations 🥴 Also that man was clearly SA’d so really just a dumpster fire of hot takes all around
I watched this movie tripping hard on ac id, I have never been more intrigued, confused, happy, scared and just lost. I have no idea if this movie was good or not, I’m not sure if alot of what I watched was true or not but it was a journey, a truly insane experience, especially whenever the characters tripped themselves which really added to the immersive feeling
I think :Dani been somewhat aware of how Mark felt about her through out the movie and been trying to get him to accept her because even in the beginning when she first called Christian over her concerns of her sister she asked Christian where he’s at and when he told her he was with his friends, she said hi to Mark who doesn’t like her or when she’s around but nothing to Josh who was indifferent to her and Pele who might have been trying to befriend her since they knew each other (I’m just comparing how each of the three treated or might have felt about Dani prior to her sister’s murder suicide of hers and Dani’s parents based on the opening and the rest of the movie)
The midnight sun can only be seen up in the Arctic Circle. South of the circle, you still have very long days, but the sun does go down for a few hours. In the Arctic Circle, the sun stays above the horizon 24/7 for some weeks. Hälsingland is not in the Arctic Circle, so you won’t see the midnight sun there.
so many horror films mirror real life imo.. from fiction to crime sci.. one of the worst things to experience outside of trauma is isolation and loneliness. Trauma response is less predictive but long term isolation and loneliness especially abandonment has scientifically proven over and over again to be one of the most damaging experiences. No wonder that its what easily makes almost anyone snap
I have to point out there is an old saying that ‘He couldn’t hold a candle to her” meaning he can’t “see her for who she really is” or “she is so bright in comparison, that he cannot illuminate her further” which shown throughout the movie where danis clothes get lighter and everyone of the outsiders slowly change to wearing black. This saying can apply to any gender, but in this case it is him to her. Dani during the senicide scene had a black heather shirt on with specks of white. Christian and Josh when fighting had Christian with a black shirt and Josh with a brown jacket and a white under shirt. Seeming to see symbolize that Josh has a deeper understanding which is why he has the white undershirt. However Christian is unsure and is just unable to leave, his intentions arent from understanding. When they are finally interviewing the cult christian is wraring a grey shirt, which shows to me ansuperfical assimilation into the group, however he is effected by the ways of the cult which is why his shirt is a light grey. Joshes shirt is a darker grey showong that he is purely from the outside and is while aware of what this cult is, is only in it for his own personal gain. Danis shirt is still dark cause she is not sipping the same Kool aid these two are and while they are questioning and asking, dani is given a white apron and directly introduced to the culture instead of having to poke, prod, and probe to tease it out of them. She is shown directly and included. Now dani after the night is wearing a dark undershirt and a grey button down, she is starting to wear her acceptance on the outisde rather than the inside.
I love horror history so much but, yeah, I don’t think “Trauma dumping” was a great phrase to use even though he did imply he had distaste for the phrase. Don’t get me wrong, i think Dani was implied to be overly emotionally reliant on Christian BEFORE the tragedy, but she didn’t really dump it on him afterwards, more so looked for support. She didn’t use him as an emotional crutch as much as she just held on to a toxic asshole because he was the only one she had left. I get not wanting to be the asshole who broke up with the girl who just lost her entire family in a murder-suicide. But if the alternative is gaslighting and emotionally abusing her because you resent being in a relationship YOU STAYED IN, suck it up and break up with her. You are not your partner’s parent and you are not obligated to stay with them for any reason if you don’t want to be in the relationship. Finally, Christian didn’t cheat. He was assaulted. He was an asshole, but he was still a human who was drugged and assaulted. I get how Dani, not having the full context, would think it was cheating, but christian was still a victim
in Russia this is the holiday of Ivan Kupala, very interesting, before Orthodoxy it was just a holiday of Kupala, they also weave wreaths, jump over the fire, dance in circles, there is also a legend that on the night of Ivan Kupala a fern blooms and the girl must go alone into the forest to find this flower, and if she finds it, she must pick it and go home through the forest, but she cannot turn around if someone calls her, even if it is the voices of her relatives, because it is not them… but not everyone celebrates this holiday. it is unofficial, but only those who remember the old traditions
I’m Swedish, to preface. The scissors under the pillow are steel, which repels trolls and other mystical creatures, and are also shaped like a cross (sort of). This is very important as to why scissors specifically are chosen to place in cribs where children sleep, because holy symbols of Christianity was known to also repell creatures like trolls.
European cultures share a lot with eachother, most of it a version of old Germanic. Dutch culture has the same elements as Scandinavian culture, and this movie reminds me a lot of stuff we did in school and in town. Especially the pickled herring lol. When I was a kid my grandmother told me not to go to the forest because the devil would snatch me and bring me to the “Witch hill” where I would have to dance forever with witches called: “Witte Wieven”, literally translated as “White Whenches” or “White wives”, who are basically evil spirits who look like the mist that appear early in the morning above grass after a rainy night. The hill is still there, in the middle of the forest. On top of it stands a thick, long pole thats been there for hundreds of years. It’s where they burned the women. Cyclists of take a breather at the foot of the hill. I wonder if this movie is a version of how Americans see us Europeans.
Honestly Christian is an interesting guy. Because he’s clearly not that good of a guy or a likable guy for that matter, staying with a girl who needs people who can truly help her out of pity I guess. Becoming progressively apathetic towards Dani yet never truly working up the strength to do the hard but right thing. In fact, he seems very apathetic towards many things and people. For a man saying he’s trying to keep an open mind, he never seems to understand what it means to try understanding people, and what they go through. He’s someone who prioritizes his own needs, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. But that goes against everything the Harga stand for, and it’s not the kind of person Dani is either. He’s in a social rock and a hard place situation all the time. Feeling like he needs to be there for someone otherwise they’ll hurt themselves, but also can’t bring himself to give what Dani really needs. Yet he resorts to toxic like behavior of not communicating with his partner and unintentionally (along with the peer pressure of his friends) gaslights her. Yet he’s also a very human character, being unable to be a proper support for someone with trauma, even when the trauma get exponentially worse, wishing to move on with his life but feels he can’t. In the process, slowly leading him to his demise. Really both Dani and Christian aren’t bad people, but they could give what the other needed. Yet they delayed the heartbreak too long and it blew up like a volcano. Also, really it wasn’t his fault at the end, he was just a r@p€ victim who was practically framed for a cheating to get him to be a potential sacrifice after his emotionally broken ex witnessed it.
You use a lot of negative language in regards to Dani sharing her emotions or needing emotional support, which she gets almost none of in the entire film. You called it “trauma dumping,” “emotional crutch,” and “dumping emotional baggage.” I didn’t see it this way at all, and I think that’s kind of a poisonous mindset. Just because someone expects their partner to be emotionally available and supportive of their needs doesn’t mean they’re dumping on them. We’re human, we’re supposed to empathize with one another, especially when we’re romantically involved, and this sort of language is generally reserved for women, playing in to the “women, they be hysterical, am I right guys??” when it’s men that need to work on their own ability to be emotionally sharing. Great analysis, and that’s my only criticism.
Christian definitely did not do his best to be there for her. Sure he lost interest already, fine but that’s not a good reason to be heartless to the person you loved when they are going thru the death of their whole family. The least he could’ve done was remember her birthday. it’s like he treated her as disposable, non-human because he “lost interest” so now he’s incapable of being a compassionate person toward her? Wtf
it is true the christian did not deliberately cheat on Dani, and there is no justification to why Dani chose to sacrifice Christian. But considering the fact the the Harga manipulated Dani to be physically, mentally, and emotionally distant towards him, Dani practically saw him not as the boyfriend who cheated on her, but as an outsider who deserves to be sacrificed.
19:47 if you look up my hometown Deline NT, they provided the uranium for the Hiroshima bomb and the elders from our small ass town formally went to Japan to apologize, when I was like 11, because a bunch of our gran-grandparents and grandparents got cancer from handling it with out proper equipment. also as a native women the trail of tears is one of my worst fears. so this article kinda mentioning them, makes me feel like were seen, thank you for that @CZsWorld < 3
I have a theory about the scissors under the baby’s pillow. I’m swedish and have read a lot of folktales. Placing an object of iron, often a horseshoe or a pair of scissors, in a child’s crib is said to protect them from being kidnapped by trolls and replaced with a troll baby, or from other supernatural entities. In some stories, a pair of scissors can also be placed on the corpse of a child that has not been babtized to prevent the child from becoming a myrling, a vengeful child ghost.
Just in case some people are not aware of the maypole. This was and still is used in a lot of Germanic influenced European counties through spring and summer festivals. the dance is performed by pairs of boys and girls (or men and women) who stand alternately around the base of the pole, each holding the end of a ribbon. They weave in and around each other, boys going one way and girls going the other and the ribbons are woven together around the pole until they meet at the base. There are also more complex dances for set numbers of trained dancers (may queen groups) involving more complicated weaves and unweaves, but they are not preformed anymore. However, such dances are performed every Mayday around the permanent Maypole at Offenham, in Worcestershire. Temporary Maypoles are usually put on village greens and events are often supervised by Morris dancers
Christian is a piece of trash boyfriend, but I don’t really see the sex scene with Maya as cheating since he was drugged up on mushrooms, which he took willingly to be fair, but when he’s under the influence he really doesn’t seem to know what’s going on. He asked the village elder what’s going on when sitting at the table with everyone and was scared when the elder claps in his face and could only ask why he’d do that. I could see it feeling like a dream to him almost with how fucking weird it was and the cult members encouraging him throughout the film to mate with Maya, that in the moment he couldn’t think straight. I do think Christian considered cheating with Maya when he was told that him and Maya are astrologically compatible but just because he had thoughts doesn’t mean what happened to him was okay. Christian was tricked and pressured to do what he did and he’s a victim of the cult just like everyone else. Is he a good person? No. Is he abusive to Dani? Of course. But he’s no worse than Pelle and him being chosen to get sacrificed was a tradgedy
Sry but Christian didn’t cheat. He was drugged and couldn’t consent. Also Danny didn’t trauma-dump. Of course she reacted with panic after being confronted with her trauma (I mean her sister killed herself and her parents. With the cult killing it’s elders, its retraumatizing her. Again and again.) But that’s what cults do, they look out for vulnerable ppl who are easier to manipulate.
Through all the horrors the hårgas last two sacrifices really struck a sensitive nerve with me: They r given sap and told u will not feel pain, u will not feel fear and then they do! – realising it’s a lie as it happens. Just shows the lvl of control the mentors have!! 😱 Also I don’t think it’s a coincidence that they have been asked to volunteer to be sacrifices either since they recently had made some “errors” 🫥
Still i can say a lot of things are hidden in this film to cover in article but what is most interesting is that this whole film, it sort of looks like a theatre workshop. In such psycological workshops, we of course act like a family or a commune, or even we dont actions or order by the mentor makes us feel anyway like this. And the best part of ARI ASTOR is that, literally tell me what can be more artistic for an artist to portray his feelings or whats he is going through ( in my native language Bengali, we call it JAPON/যাপন) other than the creative art it self?( here as the film)? Btw, isnt it kinda bit late for you to make a article about midsommer almost after 4 years of release or is that you ( and the other people’s also) are still cant get over all these symbolism and mysteries in this film, just like me😅😅😅
Trauma Dumping?! I’m sorry are you kidding? What is your expectation of a human relationship? Only fun, laughs and sex? So the moment things ACTUALLY get human real, like other emotions occurring, you want out? That’s not a partner in life, that’s a broken individual who wants a sex toy. Real and healthy human beings support each other. If you are born hollow and without the ability to care for your partner, that makes you broken.
Scrolling through the comments,people are either really dumb or ignorant of how Dani and Christian relationship. So I will tell you How I think. First of all, although I do think Christian is a asshole however his frustration is understandable. People think that he wanted to breakup with Dani after the tragedy however this is not the case. He was planning to breakup with her before the tragedy but the tragedy happened. If the tragedy didn’t happen,Christian wanted to breakup would be sad but standard however the tragedy happened. Now imagine you not emotionally invested in a relationship anymore you ready to breakup but a tragedy happened so now you have to stay in this relationship even though you’re not emotionally invested into it anymore so it would be frustrating and if you leave you will feel fell it shit would you. Although Christian is an asshole his frustration is standard because your not emotionally invested anymore but this happened and now you have stay even if you’re not invested into it anymore. Look he’s an asshole but understand where frustration comes from.
I’m happy that a lot of people agree that Christian was raped, as if the gender had been reversed, it wouldn’t even be questioned. Also, she 100% was trauma dumping on him – as she OBVIOUSLY wasn’t interested in learning coping techniques (strange, for a psychology student) and he did more than was expected of him. Even when his friends – who naturally could see that Dani was slowly killing Christian’s spirit – advised him to leave her, he chose to stay and support her in whatever way he could. Christian is a gentleman – Dani was just weak and abusive.
OMG…when this dude who is likely reading a script (sorry CZ), is talking about ‘Trauma dump,’ it’s how Christee-Ann feels–which is spot on: It’s OBVIOUS that Christy Ann would call it a Trauma Dump. It actually feels more like something Mark would say but either way, get a grip. People are unsubscribing because of this??
Yep, exactly what I thought. My comment won’t load. So here’s the short version, now with excessive asterisks; apparently the YTc*nts hate history: You got the term and the idea wrong at 18:50 N*zi is short for N*tionalsozialist (“n*tional soci*list”, as a noun – it’s almost exactly the same as in English). The term “N*tionalsozialistische” in the article is an adjective. In English this doesn’t make a difference in context, but in German it does. The difference between (leftwing) soci*lism and n*tional soci*lism is the following: – leftwing: using the workers’ influence for an international revolution – n*tional soci*list: using the workers’ influence to implement soci*lism only on a national level to deal with the post-war crisis of the 1920s and early 30s Surprise: Both had bigger plans, but they put a focus on workers, because those had gained some serious political weight since the second half of the 1800s and were seen as the “motor of progress”. For example, they had forced the government of the Second German Empire to implement worker-friendly reforms (like inventing social insurances concerning health, unemployment etc.) to avoid a violent revolution. N*tional soci*lists didn’t misappropriate the term soci*lism, they just made clear, that they wanted it limited to one country instead of becoming a globalist movement. And in contrast to the “Sozis” (= leftwing German soci*lists), who were in power during the 1920s, the “N*zis” actually delivered and ended the national crisis.
I kind of feel bad for christian because he wanted to break up with dani for a while, but right when he was going to. He learned that his girlfriends sister had just commited a double murder suicide with her parents. Now he was stuck in a relationship he does not want to be in, but cant leave Dani because that would just be awful. To leave someone who just lost there whole family. Yes the way he “supported her” is not the best. In fact he was a dirtbag to Dani. But he just doesn’t love her anymore but can’t break up with her.
So Christian gets drugged, raped, blamed for the rape and burned in the end while the Dani walks out covered in flowers? And this is how the creator of the film views the end of relationships… they need serious help, like serious help, absolutely sexist. If the shoe was on the other foot, this film wouldnt have even been allowed to be released.
It should be noted it takes more than medication to balance out moodswings brought on by bipolar. I know because I have bipolar and although medication helps neorologically, it doesn’t help with moodswings brought on by hormones or if you are in an environment with high ammounts of stress. When I first diagnosed I was living with my parents who would come home from work with so much stress you can feel the tension the moment they walk in, and I had a hard time getting the right dosage with my medications and even switch from Zoloft to Paxil as I still deal with moodswings brought on by stressful environment. But after I moved out I noticed my moodswings are less frequent and easier to handle. It also helps to have someone to talk to. If you feel like you’re not getting it from those around you, seek out a good therapist. Maybe your own psychiatrist can suggest one to go to since you are hopefully seeing a psychiatrist too see if adjustments to dosage in your bipolar medicaion or if you need to switch to a different medication.
I think it’s interesting they put St John’s Wort in there as well because Dani is going to be a psychologist and that flower is used in herbal medicine and natural medication to help combat anxiety and promote better moods. Seeing all the heartache, anxiety, and tragedy Dani goes through I’m sure it’s just another fun fact/Easter egg connection in the movie.
I watched this movie about a year or two ago, and even as a horror/true crime fanatic, it was one of those things where I went, “M’kay, that’s enough for today. I’ve seen enough” afterward. I seldom feel that way, and of all the things that I’ve watched, even after perusal this article, I still can’t exactly pinpoint why Midsommar is especially creepy and unsettling for me. My stomach is in knots, and I’m not sure if it’s from revisiting Midsommar in this fashion or the concoction of food I’ve eaten today.
My personal opinion on “Did Christian really cheat on Dani?” : Yes. He did. Why do I think so? because before he had the drink, the woman told him clearly that it was a drink that made you “defenseless”. He knew that, yet drank it anyway. I think he did it in order to find a reason to escape if Dani did find out about it. He could say “I was drugged. I didn’t know the drink was drugged”. In most of cases, this is a strategy people use to defend themselves. Throughout the movie, Christian is shown to have some interest in the girl anyways. He’s a horrible boyfriend either way.
Just in case someone wanted to know about the sissors under the pillow, it not that they are sissors but because they are made of iron wich in nordic folklore scared away evil beings. There are cases of people putting sissors under the doorstep to avoid trolls coming in and taking their babys. Aslo the satchet most likey contains dried lavender wich has calming abilities and satches like this were common to make in Sweden in old times.
What I like of this movie is that, what is horror for us happens in daylight, because accepted in the village culture, or necessary to mantain it. I like also the absence of supernatural, except for folk magician that could appear as harmless for unbelievers. However my mother says me that a mestrual drop into a coffee was a love potion still used in Italy between the WWs. And if you think well consubstantuation into the christian mass is a typical magician act: priest, every single believer and community of believers (magic triangle) declare that bread and wine are body and blood of God son offered at Gof father, and it becomes. Then a collective act of cannibalism follows. Strangeway that body rises at every Easter, and this overturns every phisical law
A little off topic, but I noticed when perusal this movie and a music article for the Russian band “Ic3peak” that there are a lot of comparisons, in two of their music articles, actually. In Kiss of Death, the two group members are wearing the same white clothes, and the singers hair is braided with a giant flower crown, yet as the music article continues, it gets progressively darker. Not to mention, in another music article, there is a line of wemon braiding one anothers hair in unison. May just be my brain, but the similarities are pretty visible. Check it out for yourself if you want!
That’s why I don’t really go places, especially off the beaten path. It’s just not worth the risk of getting lost or running into some dangerous situation… Even the beaten path is not entirely safe. So, you should probably think twice HARD about where you go or what you do and be as prepared as you can be when you do.
That Jon Solo call out was pretty funny – and made me realize, I kept thinking you reminded me of someone! Now I know who! When will you two collab, I wonder… 😛 (And to tack on to what others have said, it’s kinda gross to say Dani was ‘trauma dumping’ on her BOYFRIEND. Your loved ones should be there to comfort you and share the burden – that’s not trauma dumping. Trauma dumping is a member of my discord who logs in EVERY SINGLE DAY to talk about how terrible that day was, how much pain she was in… even when she talks about her cats, its to say “Oh they’re cuddling me… BECAUSE I’M IN SO MUCH PAIN” – she’s dumping constant negativity and sorrow onto people who don’t know her well, and aren’t obligated to suffer alongside her…that is trauma dumping. It’s actually pretty misogynyst to say that a woman leaning on her partner for emotional support is ‘trauma dumping’ and ‘using him as an emotional crutch’. Compassion fatigue is real in anyone, so yes… maybe at a certain point her boyfriend should have said “I don’t know how to help you with this, and I hate seeing you in pain – have you looked at setting up therapy appointments?” Most colleges have therapists on staff – it’s odd she didn’t see one.)
The scissors under the pillows in the baby cradle: In Swedish folklore you are supposed to put a piece of iron in the cradle to scare away the trolls. Otherwhise, a troll mother would come and take the human baby and switch it with her own ugly, screaming troll baby 😅 It can be any kind of tool made of iron, like scissors, a knife, a spit of some kind. Not sure how this applies in the movies, but that is the original folklore meaning to it 🙂
Interesting fact: Swedish was neutral during WWII. I’m sure there were nazi collaborators there as there were in many countries besides the axis powers, but not the entire country was working with HItler. Infact many sweedish were part in helping get Jews from Nazi Controlled Countries by taking them in and even sending them to other continents/countries if needed. I remember this because one of my favorite books since the fourth Grade was Number the Stars where a Danish family from Denmark help their Jewish neighbors along with many other Jews sneak on a fishing boat to Sweeden during WWII when Germany had control of Denmark and the author based it on her own experience during the time.
I read online about Ättestupa, the ritual never existed. It was more about a misunderstanding or double-meaning of some old phrase that become a political joke when the question of what provisions would Swedish society make for retirees and the provisions sounded similar to suicide or sacrifice so it became a political joke that the elderly would be killed off. It is much more modern than old. It never was a historical custom.
a few imputs. Christian didn’t cheat. He never responded to Maya´s attention. Why?, because he didn’t wanted Dany out of the relationship. He es very careful, never doing something that pushes Dany into breaking the relationship. When she complains about the trip, he invited her, if he didn’t this could have been a breaking point for Dany. He didn’t want that, he wanted Dany on the side because he might need her…
I call what happens to Dani Trama-Control. It’s when someone is so overwhelmed by trama that any new more powerful more overwhelming trama washes over someone that person is radically changed by it. Like a hard drive being wiped clean by a magnet. In normal situations the person either is changed by whatever thoughts, feelings, or supposed revelations they may be experiencing at the time of the new incident or in this situation, if that new trama is being “controlled” or guided then a new self is put in its place. In this situation, the cults beliefs. That’s why families are burned to death every year. Dani snaps at the end of this film. Not set free. Which is how the cult works. And in order to hold the illusion of happiness now going forward, she’ll have to give herself completely to this new belief otherwise all that trama will return plus the knowledge she allowed innocent people to die including her boyfriend. That is a really disturbing narrative. This movie left me feeling icky. Which I guess was it’s point. Hereditary did the same thing to me. Also the horror movie “Yellow Brick Road.”
Great article! I havnt quite understood how there can be so many mayqueens if the ritual is only performed once every 90 yrs? or is that just a thing they tell outsiders? also: i know it’s kinda a lot to ask but you might consider putting little spoiler alerts in before you mention other films. i havn’t seen hereditary yet 🙈
I don’t know if it’s just me.. but I will never see flowers normally again, since the characters in the story are constantly under influence/drugged you can see the flowers on Dani’s crown/outfit move and I just cannot unsee that in flowers IRL whenever I see the same flowers in a botanic shop or just in nature in general
The best of these pagan movies is the Director’s Cut of the Original Wicker Man. Not that abomination with Nick Cage. The other that was around about that time was the book Harvest Home. They turned that into a made for TV mini-series I think, Betty Davis played The old lady that ran the town, for the rules they had for TV back then It was pretty risque for the ’70s, I guess it seems to me they get predictable. IMHO
I kinda see why the occult doped up the mayqueen dance competitors before starting the dance. The Dancing Plague that struck France was said to take place for days. And some drugs are known to affect coordination which is essential for dancing. So they probably brew that special tea to speed the process up.
I look at the ending of this movie like the ending of Joker, when Arthur is dancing on top of the cop car, surrounded by people cheering him on. He thinks he’s found true happiness, when we the fans know that he’s been consumed by evil. It seems like a similar situation happens with this ending. Even though Dani thinks she’s found her true family among the cultists, we know that they, ever so subtly, have been wrapping her around their finger.
Some fun facts for non Scandinavians but the original celebration for christmas here or as we call it Jul was a midwinter celebration just as midsommar is a midsummer celebration. Because of the hardship in the lifestyle in the north we celebrated the darkest day by blot (sacrifice) to please the gods to help us through the winter. So you had both Midvinterblot and midsommarblot, which is why they make all the sacrifices during the movie. Alot of pagan traditions are still common during Jul and midsommar, I have a friend in the Stockholm area where his family actually sacrifice a goat every midsommar. Finally its also believed that when Scandinavia became christian, british or germans implemented the idea of jul to create christmas. This is however a theory but one thing that isnt is that Jul and midsommar has been celebrated here for thousands of years.
Christian was actually sexually assaulted if you think about it, because they drugged him and all of them took advantage of him, only to make matters worse they also took advantage of Danny mentally frail state and would use that to kill Christian because he was somewhat aware and would be in a lot of trouble if he came to from the drug.
It also might be there only thirty pictures of may queens because it’s a movie and producers couldn’t get number of photos to date as far back as when cameras were available to use to take pictures of May Queen Festivals. At least, the ones that doesn’t require you to stand for a long period of time to get a propper picture. Movie wise though, it could be pictures are just optional,
It’s the Wizard of OZ, the film goes from an almost dim, black and white setting (Kansas) to a bright and colourful broad landscape of flowers. The Wizard of Oz is about self discovery and this kind is with Dani being Dorothy and her traveling companions dying because of their faults. Mark is the Fool and literally stuffed with straw at the end, he is the Scarecrow, killed for being thoughtless (no brain) and disrespectful to another’s culture. Josh is the Tin Man because he is heartless and analytical, he disrespects the culture by not respecting their wishes and feelings (heart) and trying to photograph the scripture for his own gain. Christian is the Cowardly Lion because he is too scared to stand up for himself during the cultures rituals, goes along with everything and also doesn’t breakup with Dani even though the relationship isn’t good for either of them. He could have said no to her coming on the trip. Lions and Tigers and BEARS, oh my! Many, many great layered themes and interpretations to this film but thought I’d mention one that isn’t discussed as much.