Midsommar, the movie, is partially based on the real midsummer festival celebrated in Sweden, but includes violent and pagan cult activities not found in the actual tradition.
The short answer is that the cult depicted in "Midsommar" is not based on one exact group, but is more a combination of elements from several different pagan and pre-monotheistic factions. “It's a stew,” Aster said during a talk after a screening of the film at the Brooklyn Alamo Drafthouse, according to Polygon.
In Scandinavia and elsewhere, many Midsummer celebrations are held over several days and often occur in tandem with St. John's Eve festivities, which usher in the feast day of St. John the Baptist (June 24). The holiday originated as a pagan celebration to welcome the summer season and ensure a successful harvest.
Even Christian wears the symbol of an upward facing arrow based on the Norse god Týr who sacrificed himself for the greater good. Therefore, Christian's death reflects Týr's. The most bizarre symbol of Paganism and Swedish midsummer tradition is the sex scene between Christian and Maja.
The theological message of Aster's film arises, instead, from a concerted examination of spiritual loss. Midsommar's plot can be described as a prolonged romantic break-up between its protagonists, Dani and Christian – university students conjoined in a relationship of codependence.
There are no characters representing a Christian perspective or morally redemptive values. In fact, the story contains some desecration of Christian symbols. MIDSOMMAR certainly isn't a movie for media-wise audiences, but MOVIEGUIDE® advises all moviegoers that it's one horror movie they sould skip.
A lot of what you're pulling from you've said, are from pagan influences and folk stories from Swedish history. MARTIN: We pulled from Sweden, northern Europe, some Viking stuff and some of our own fantasies. I'd say about four years or something like that.
Midsommar is essentially a two-and-a-half-hour study of one woman's emotional journey towards emancipation from a toxic relationship. The film has a happy ending, more or less.
The Hair In Christian's Food Was Also Clever Foreshadowing
Many people will have noticed one of the most obvious Midsommar Easter eggs, that Christian's drink in the last act was a different color from everyone else's. And in hindsight, it couldn't be clearer why — he'd been selected for the traditional mating ritual.
Josh later learns that the village's ritualistic practices are based on paintings made by a member named Ruben (Levente Puczko-Smith), a deformed boy who was the product of incest but is viewed as some kind of seer. Josh asks to take pictures of Ruben's drawings, but he is forbidden.
Pelle is the main antagonist of the 2019 psychological horror film Midsommar. He is from Halsingland, Sweden and a member of The Hårga. He was portrayed by Vilhelm Blomgren.
In the end, Dani smiles at the memory of her past being set aflame, and we can't help but relate to the cathartic moment. Why? We shouldn't feel pressured to feel as if the perspectives presented are entirely right or wrong.
Midsommar even got some heat for its use of eugenics and ableist tropes, as if these plot elements were cheap ways to build horror. However, we could argue this criticism missed the point entirely, as the Hårga are not the heroes of the story.
Dagens Nyheter, one of Sweden's biggest dailies, described Midsommar as an "entertaining horror in a fantasy version of Sweden". "There is an exhilarating exoticism in Aster's film that has a specific entertainment value for Swedish spectators," it went on.
Seriously, plug it into Google and you'll find satellite images of the locale, seemingly rural, but not overtly occupied by a cheerily sinister community with a penchant for psychedelics. Hårga is indeed real, but the Hårga people, insofar as Aster conceived of them for his movie, are not.
At its core, Midsommar is about indoctrination, focusing on Florence Pugh's 'Dani' as she slowly acclimatises and unwillingly begins to accept the rituals and culture of the 'Hårga'. The film is not 'traditionally' scary, there is no flesh-eating monster or bloodthirsty stalker waiting to jump out at the audience.
The Hårga's kill Mark after he accidentally urinates on their sacred ancestral tree, an act that is interpreted as a massive transgression and insult from the cult's perspective.
After unwittingly urinating on a sacred tree, Mark is lured away by one of the female commune members. That night, Josh sneaks out of bed to take illicit photographs of sacred texts. He is caught by a half-naked man wearing Mark's skinned face and is bludgeoned to death.
A24/Midsommar. The meal showcases meat (there's a farm on the premises), seafood (an important part of Nordic cuisine), vegetables (potatoes were a must), house-made butter, and foraged items like berries, leaves, and flowers.
The cause-and-effect relationships between events in the movie feel suggested more than confirmed. The predominant read of Midsommar — one that Aster himself has more or less advanced — is that it's a metaphorical depiction of a relationship in crisis entering a tailspin and plummeting to the ground below.
He's subsequently drugged, and in his altered state, Christian does indeed go through with the sex ritual, solidifying his severed ties with Dani. When Dani returns, she hears the ritual happening and witnesses Christian's infidelity. She runs out, horrified and sobbing — but this time, she's not alone.
It is alluded that Pelle and Dani are destined to be together based on the fact that they are an astrological match. Not only is she the ideal person to become the Harga's queen, she is also the ideal mate for Pelle.
The runes in the barn they sleep in also act as nods to what's going to happen; Perthro, which can mean fate or prophecy, the universe at work (literally it's the art of magic of guessing); Othala, which can mean home or inheritance are both seen on the walls.
However, Midsommar recreates many of the traditions within the real festival, including wearing “peasant clothing,” adorning the community with flowers, and dancing around a traditional Maypole.
Midsummer is one of Sweden's most popular holidays. It takes place in June and is a celebration of summer. Many people pick flowers and create flower crowns which they wear throughout the day. Some people even wear traditional folk costumes to honour their regions.
