Midsommer (2019) is an interesting and gloriously styled film that, despite running to nearly three hours, holds your attention with a clever blend of beautifully shot scenes, tense atmosphere and never-entirely-sure-what’s-coming-next storyline.
Dani has problems and issues. Her sister commits suicide at the beginning of the film, taking both their parents with her. That, together with being in a relationship with Christian, a man who seems not to know what honesty and commitment are, adds to her frequent panic attacks and paranoia. Then, out of the blue, she discovers that he’s off to Sweden for the summer and, almost as a guilty afterthought, he invites her along; making it a party of four men, and Dani.
It transpires that one of his college friends, Pelle—played very well by Vilhelm Blomgren—was raised in a commune tucked away in an extremely remote corner of this heavily forested country. And this year is a once in a 90 year chance to participate in a very special midsummer festival. We will discover just how special that turns out to be!
From the start all is not as it seems. The festivities begin harmlessly enough in bright summer sunshine with flowers, food and dancing. If that sounds a little twee, there is, throughout the first half of the film, an undercurrent of tension. And, like a dripping tap, the tension is released little by little, drawing you in as the film gradually grows darker and darker. And it does become very dark indeed. This is not a film for the faint hearted, and one most definitely not for the children of the house.
I thoroughly enjoyed Midsommer’s cinematography; wide sweeping scenes of Scandinavian beauty, the colours bright and vibrate. At one point a winding forest road was slowly rotated until the sky became the highway, winding through the tops of endless pine.
Florence Pugh, best known for playing Katherine in the excellent Lady Macbeth (2016), was superb as Dani. I felt that Jack Reyner, playing Christian didn’t entirely convince; considering what was going on around him he was a little underwhelming.
Overall I enjoyed the slow burn effect of the film. You knew that something was around the corner, that the idyllic nature of the setting and the ever-so-polite community were too good to be true. But what? Then it arrived; the scene that awakened the narrative. You’ll know exactly what I mean. From there the film picks up it’s pace, racing you along to a quite amazing and visceral finale.
Midsommer’s certainly a long film, but stay with it. The ending is intriguing. Does she? Or doesn’t she?
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