Midsommar: what the hell just happened? Discuss with spoilers
A ‘Wizard of Oz for perverts’, exposing the rotten heart of western civilisation, or a bad trip comedy? Ari Aster’s bewildering horror leaves us repairing our frayed nerves
•This article contains spoilers about Midsommar
For many viewers emerging from the cinema, the first question about Midsommar will undoubtedly be: what the hell just happened? We begin our journey in the relative certainties of the real world – albeit one soured by bereavement for our heroine Dani (Florence Pugh). Nearly two-and-a-half hours later, reality has been warped to the extent that it makes perfect sense to watch Dani, drugged up and dressed as a Jeff Koons puppy, saying goodbye to her asshole boyfriend as he burns to death inside a disembowelled bear, along with other sacrificial victims, in a giant triangular barn, in the middle of Swedish nowhere, surrounded by her cheery new “family”. This is fine!
Related: Midsommar director Ari Aster: ‘I often cling to dead things’