‘Midsommar': 3-Hour Director's Cut Adds Some Much Needed Depth to Ari Aster's Film

[Originally posted on December 30th, 2019]

A re-evaluation of Ari Aster’s “Midsommar” was high on my list of writing priorities as I finally watched the 3-hour director’s cut — a fuller, more depth-filled and coherent version than the theatrically released one.

Director Aster, adding 30 minutes to the original cut, has claimed that “Midsommar” is his “breakup movie.” After all, the screenplay was written when the director, as he acknowledged at the New York premiere I attended back in the summer, was going through a rough patch in a long-term relationship.

“Midsommar,” much like Aster’s debut, “Hereditary,” is a story about grief, but done within the horror genre. It mixes horror, drama, and farce to the point where this odd amalgam of genres starts to feel like a surreal nightmare. Suffice to say, the considerable visual framing talents that Aster showed in “Hereditary” are back on display here.

Florence Pugh is Dani, a young woman having to deal with a family tragedy — her clinically depressed sister kills both herself and their parents — and the toxic relationship she’s in with self-absorbed boyfriend Christian (Jack Reynor). He originally wanted to break up with Dani, but her family tragedy turns out to setback his plans as he is put in the position of delaying the news due to her vulnerable mental state. Christian is in such a fragile situation with Dani that he ends up feeling obligated to invite her to a mid-summer getaway in Sweden that he and his friends had planned to embark on post-breakup.

Christian is nothing short of toxic for Dani. A self-absorbed man-child who would rather hang with his buddies, scholarly Josh (William Jackson Harper) and stoner Mark (Will Poulter), than lend a hand to a suffering girlfriend. The remote Swedish village they travel to, with Swede classmate Pelle (Vilhelm Blomgren), has them exploring the rituals of the ancient family traditions that Pelle’s relatives have practiced for over a century. It’s that time of the year, when mid-summer hits Sweden, the sun never, or barely, sets, and Swedes embark on festive activities to celebrate the annual solstice. However, this ragtag bunch of Swedish oddballs have their own rituals and traditions. Singing, praying, eating and sleeping is at the rendez-vous, but so are sacrificial suicides and purposeful inbreeding. The quasi-deranged rituals, which trigger some of the protagonists and make them realize that the cult-like atmosphere of this village has sinister shades hidden beneath its sunny facade, is the breaking point for Christian, Josh and Mark, but not for Dani — she’s nothing short of mesmerized.

If anything, the film turns out to be about Dani’s journey. She tags along for the trip, not knowing that Christian never wanted her there in the first place. The villagers, especially Pelle, see Dani’s vulnerability — her lack of a family, depression, a shitty boyfriend, and all but a bad trip away from completely losing her mind — as an opportunity to pounce and initiate a new member into their “family.”

Much like Lars von Trier’s “Melancholia,” Aster attempts to get to the core of what it feels like to be embattled by depression. It’s no coincidence that Aster decided to set his film in a location where the sun never sets — unlike most horror films, the dangers in “Midsommar” lurk in the light. Although we see the Swedish cultists in the film as the villains, to Dani they are not necessarily dangers — in fact, they slowly but surely start to represent her last shot at salvation and a better mental state. Much like Kirsten Dunst in “Melancholia,” Dani’s mental health starts to improve as every other friend around her deteriorates gravely. Dani was in such a dark place when she settled into this Swedish retreat that, wouldn’t you know it, the cultist rituals have a positive effect on her.

The idea of being embraced by a group or community resulting in happiness isn’t anything new, in fact it’s the significant basis for the lure of religion. “Midsommar” is about the pursuit of happiness, freeing yourself from hopelessness, even if it means joining dark forces. In a way, this is a film that tackles the ideas of religion, believing in something greater than just yourself, and how a community can be a saving grace even if what’s being preached is incredibly immoral.

What I had originally dismissed as an ‘unsubtle” and “messy” movie turned out to be a sheer delight with Aster’s 3-hour director’s cut (now available on Apple TV+). The relationship between Dani and Christian is more fully fleshed-out, with more conversation added between the two to make the viewer more aware of their tumultuously shared history together. Pugh, an absolutely marvelous acting talent, plays Dani with the kind of wide-eyed vulnerability that is sometimes too hard to watch. However, in the three-hour cut, the transformation that happens to her on screen feels all too real.

It all comes down to the final ritual at the climax of the film, when Dani joins the other women of the village in a folk dancing marathon — the rules are simple, keep dancing until you just can’t anymore, and the last girl left will be crowned Queen of the summer solstice. With exercise being a great treatment for depression, the dancing only helps Dani, as she keeps dancing the day away, never out-of-breath, too focused on the endorphin rush — the feeling she gets is of damn-near exhilaration and nobody can keep up with her. After the most traumatizing of family tragedies ruins her very fabric, she’s finally in a good place, wanted by a community and finally crowned Queen. When it comes the time to have one last look at a weakened and pathetic Christian, Dani can’t help but smile.

The Director’s Cut of “Midsommar” is now available on Blu-Ray and DVD