Midsommar

Midsommar is a 2019 folk horror film written and directed by Ari Aster. The film stars Florence Pugh and Jack Reynor as a dysfunctional American couple who travel to rural Sweden with a group of friends for a midsummer festival, but find themselves in the clutches of a sinister cult claiming to practice Scandinavian paganism. Supporting actors include William Jackson Harper, Vilhelm Blomgren, Ellora Torchia, Archie Madekwe, and Will Poulter. A co-production between the United States and Sweden, the film was initially pitched to Aster as a straightforward slasher film set among Swedish cultists. While elements of the original concept remain in the final product, the finished film focuses on a deteriorating relationship inspired by a difficult breakup experienced by Aster himself. The film's soundtrack, composed by British electronic musician Bobby Krlic (better known as The Haxan Cloak), takes inspiration from Nordic folk music. The film was shot on location in Budapest in the summer and autumn of 2018. Midsommar was theatrically released in the United States by A24 on July 3, 2019, and in Sweden by Nordisk Film on July 10, 2019. The film grossed $48 million and received positive reviews, with praise for Aster's direction and Pugh's performance in particular, although it polarized general audiences. Plot American student Dani is left deeply traumatized after her bipolar sister Terri kills their parents and herself. The incident further strains Dani's relationship with her increasingly distant boyfriend, a fellow student named Christian, who, with his friends Mark and Josh, has been invited by their Swedish friend Pelle to attend a midsummer festival at his ancestral commune, the Hårga, in the rural Hälsingland region of Sweden. The festival occurs only once every 90 years; Josh, who is writing his thesis on European midsummer festivities, regards it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Christian had not discussed the trip with Dani, as he intended to break up with her before her family tragedy happened, but he reluctantly invites her along after an argument.