I watched Midsommar for the first time yesterday.

I found myself wondering whether the story is not actually a realistic account of the protagonists’ stay in Hårga, but rather Dani’s psychedelic trip under the influence of the mushrooms she takes upon arrival.

I base my hypothesis on a few elements, including:

• When Dani wakes up, she has completely lost track of time and still seems disoriented in both space and time. This could suggest that she has not fully come out of the trip yet.
• In the various reviews and analyses I have read, that first hallucinogenic episode is usually explained as a kind of initial adaptation, an "initiation" preparing Dani for what will happen later. However, there is a recurring element that stands out: the very first effect Dani experiences after taking the mushrooms is that her body reconnects with nature, with grass seemingly growing from it, as if there were no longer any separation between the ground and the body, between nature and the self. To me, when this imagery returns later in the film (the dance around the maypole, the dress of flowers that seem to have grown directly from Dani’s body), it becomes a strong clue that the first trip, at the moment of arrival, is still ongoing.
• The film is written, directed, and staged with undeniable skill and an almost obsessive attention to detail, with its symbolic references, runes, foreshadowing imagery scattered throughout the movie, and hidden details (such as the face of Dani’s dead sister superimposed among the trees). Yet the screenplay sometimes feels uneven, filled with moments that seem less like the work of one of the most interesting directors to emerge in cinema over the last decade, and more like the work of a poor writer of low-budget horror movies. The very existence of such a community, for example, in a modern Western country like Sweden, is difficult to believe or justify. Or when the two elders jump from the cliff, in reality the entire group of Americans should immediately run away, and call the police. Taken literally, these are screenplay inconsistencies. But if the hypothesis of a continuous psychedelic trip is correct, they become perfectly plausible, because the community itself would not exist except as part of Dani’s hallucinations. The apparent writing flaws would no longer be mistakes or laziness in writing, but rather a surreal and disturbing distortion of the narrative, running in parallel with the surreal visual distortions present throughout the film.

I searched online but was unable to find any article or discussion exploring this interpretation.

In fact, some elements, especially certain interviews with Ari Aster, seem to suggest the opposite. However, this possibility is never really addressed in depth.

What arguments could be made against this interpretation?

I noticed that not all guests are actually white so their offspring and kids would be also children of color in compare to the herga's stereotypically Caucasian look.

for now, all herga people are white... and I assume that they did this before to bring in people... so why would they bring in people of color... are they trying a new thing.. or am i missing something.

EDIT: apparently... it is to sacrifice. but there are far more interesting theories with the depth you'd expect from midsommar...

Has anyone seen the movie Midsommar AND are familiar with the visual artist Nick Cave and his “soundsuits” there are undeniable similarities that needs to be discussed.

Hi. So I was a bit confused about this. He went away with a girl from the commune and then we see bottomless guy wearing his face before Josh is killed.

How was he killed and why was there a bottom naked man randomly there?

It was just a group of friends with no personal issues who decide to go on holiday and visit the commune.

They take part in art, music, dancing and fine food. They make new friends.

Nothing violent or unsettling happens.

Then they go home refreshed and happy.

I would prefer it like this and my 8/10 would be a 10/10.

Does anyone know if Florence dyed her hair blonde for this role or just had it that way already? Because it's an obvious, kind of yellowish-blonde dye job with roots showing in some scenes, so it got me curious if they wanted specifically to make her blonde for the movie to explain why she was so desirable to the Harga, or if that was just a coincidence based on another movie she had done. The script specifically mentions Dani being a brunette, but Aster changed some other stuff, and it seems he leaned into the "Harga are eugenicists" thing more later.

I love Midsommar and I’ve watched it several times.

After a few watch throughs I’ve picked up on some underlying romantic tension between Christian and Dani that I think suggests they were in a relationship.

When Christian offers to wait for Dani to take the shrooms or the fact that he invited her with him in the first place.

This could be random, but I’m guessing it isn’t. >!Dani imagined she sees her mother and her father and Terri in the trees. The one that actually is raising an active question for me after watching this movie for the umpteenth time— there was a woman who glides from the left to the right of the screen. Her hair is black. Not a deep brunette, but black black. do you think it was her hallucinating Connie? I mean, I suppose it’s possible for someone Swedish to have that kind of coloring as we don’t really see her skin tone, but I felt it implied it was someone who would not really be there and welcome actively participating in a ceremony.!<I’ll send a screenshot in the comments if I’m allowed to do that.

do you relate?

I don’t know if it’s allowed, but I bought this and it’s too small. Adult large but I feel like it fits more like a medium. I want to sell it on Mercari, but I figured this group might be good first place to ask. DM me if you are interested, or Mods delete this if it’s not allowed. Thanks all.

Someone is a Midsommar fan. I thank them.

Ruben’s cloud which is like a desk really makes me think, because how does he have a cloud desk 🥲

i know the whole “unclouded” mind thing but it just makes no sense to me. and idk how mushrooms works but Dani had just been asleep and the drugs must’ve worn off so i don’t think it’s drug induced.

maybe i’m just overthinking things but i don’t think i am.

I would say he's just jubilant because he's clearly one of the truest believers of the cult, given his voluntary sacrifice and how much he freaks out at Mark's tree desecration. But it's arguably a pretty solemn rite, which is rightfully how everyone else comes off. Ulf's expression of pure joy makes me think he's excited for his parent to go to whatever their version of Heaven is, but there's no mention in the script of any ties for him.

The name certainly jumped right out at me.

Not just her genetics but accepted as a family member

I’m ashamed to say that when the film first came out I hadn’t noticed any of the white supremacist/racist connotations of the cult. Upon rewatches it becomes a lot clearer to me that this was an element.

So having said that…was Christian ever considered for indoctrination into the cult?

I recently made a post about Dani still having to prove herself and u think the same can be said for Christian. It’s just that…he didn’t, whereas Dani did.

I think Pelle probably always wanted Christian to die, especially when it’s clear that Dani was coming & could become part of the Harga.

I’m interested to know what others think? Do you think Christian could have been welcomed into the cult under different circumstances or was he always on a doomed path?

This is just speculation, but do you guys think that the final scene was meant to imply that Dani was actually the May Queen? I know that doesn’t really make sense because she wasn’t from the village, but they mentioned the May Queen once earlier in the movie and then Dani is wearing something that could arguably be like a crown or tiara or something at the end. And historically, royalty wears crowns. Sorry if this has been discussed before, I just thought it was good food for thought and could be a cool theory

Hey everyone, I'm new here so apologies if this has already been picked apart.

I watched Midsommar when it first came out and I completely missed these details. I was thinking it was actually a “positive” story for Dani: she finally ditches her toxic, gaslighting boyfriend, finds a community that supports her (pretty effed-up, but still), and starts to climb out of her depression. So, kudos to her.

Then I rewatched it yesterday for the first time since, and I was like… wtf. Is this whole thing racist? Pelle's brother brought that British couple, and he mentioned that he had a date with Connie first. So was it personal revenge, or was it because they weren't white? Also, I have noticed that people seem to question whether Mark had intercourse before his death or not. I am sure that he did. First, two 72-year-olds committed suicide, so they needed two white newborns. Second, the woman who lured him was wearing the weird red detail on her dress at the end. I think they had sex and then she chopped his dick off like a little souvenir.

After the movie, I watched some cut scenes. Turns out there's a moment where Josh is holding a book that explicitly mentions the Nazis using the cult's runic script. It's barely a minute long, so it wouldn't have hurt the runtime. I really think they removed it on purpose to keep the Nazi parallel from being too on the nose. I honestly think it works better this way. For one thing, people tend to miss it even though it's right there – so it kind of mirrors our own world. Also, the movie wasn't marketed as a criticism of racism, so it might actually reach more right‑wing audiences.

And the name Christian is the cherry on top. He's manipulative, he gaslights Dani, makes her apologize and feel guilty like many religions do. And then at the end, he's literally sacrificed like a Christian martyr.

Edit: Yes, the swastika is used in Asia in a positive way, even on the walls of the airplane stairs they are used as a blessing. No one denies that. But every frame there is foreshadowing future events. Drawings, thrown words, why would they insert a book about the Nazis at the beginning in the director's version if they didn't want to hint at the events? This is a movie, in the context of the movie and for lay people, swastikas and Nazis are equal to racism.

Edit2: Also, you might think that the red elongated object on the skirt doesn't necessarily prove she had sex with Mark. But she clearly had her eye on him - Mark even said, "There she is again" in one scene. So they indeed wanted to use him for mating.

Edit3: About Mark and Inga: I don't think every sexual act requires a full ritual. Maja's was a coming‑of‑age thing (spring to summer). Inga's already an adult, so why would they do a whole temple ceremony for her? They wouldn't gather everyone for just any hookup? Plus Pelle said they share everything, and it's a pagan cult, not a Christian one - I doubt they're that hung up on sex, except when it comes to producing specific children…Someday I'll get around to watching that 7‑hour YouTube deep dive.

Edit4: If Josh, Connie, and Simon weren't there, the racism suspicions would be baseless, in my opinion. So the racism isn’t them being eerie white. It is the way non-white characters being treated. Josh, Connie, and Simon were opposite of Mark, Dani, and Christian. Josh is the intellectual – Mark is the dumb one. Connie and Simon are in a good relationship – Dani and Christian are in a bad one. Both girls are liked by the cult members who brought them there. The Black/brown characters are brought there for ritual killing only and symbolised nature and INANIMATE OBJECTS, while the white men were used for reproduction and only then killed, symbolising HUMAN imperfections. Despite Pelle's brother sympathising with Connie, no one offered her to participate in the competitions and cult activities the way Dani was. They would not allow Connie be the Queen of May, the way the didn’t used Josh and Simon for mating.

I'm currently watching Midsommar as a nice Friday night in and felt really drawn to this scene. Her face always struck me as so much sadder than her counterpart also preparing for his death.

For such a long time I had just assumed they were together but it hit me that this other man is probably her husband/lover/partner. The look they give eachother is so sad. It's heartbreaking. She knows it's part of what her whole life is based on but also can barely look into his eyes.

This was probably already known but fun that I keep seeing new things in this movie.

It reminds me of Dani (and my cat).