Midsommar is atypical for a horror film in that it shows us a beautiful, well lit landscape instead of following the usual trope of dimly lit, in-door scenes. The horror doesn't come from things that may suddenly appear on screen. It's a psychological horror film and as such, relies on narrative to inpire awe rather than jump scares. It is one of the more sophisticated horror films.

What is the sophistication behind it then? Well, even though narrative is a vehicle in this film, it isn't about the narrative. The story is simple enough: a bunch of assholes anger a pagan cult on a holiday whose anger is awakened while a grieving lady finds their favour. I don't want to include spoilers. But one additional sentence of the same length would've summarized the entire movie. And yet, it's over 3 hours long. The power of this movie comes from what is being done in this timespan and how the audience is being affected. It's a slow burn that builds up to a climax: a dragged out scene of Danny dancing with the cult while she is separated from her friend group. The scenery is absolutely beautiful. The focus on visuals when we've been put on the edge of our seats has a hypnotic effect. That is the power of thuis film. Through the power of hypnosis we are put in Danny's shoes. She makes the abhorrent decision of sacrificing her friends (guess I'm spoiling anyway). But by this time, we've seen how horribly she's been treated by them. We've seen the cult psychologically share her pain. And we've been hypnotized. The final sacrifice scène is of course a slow burn as well. And a smile appears on her face. A smile of relief, as if some ballast has been removed. Through pure cinematography, the abhorrent is transformed I to the beautiful. That is the point of this film: psychological transformation. The Aster family is cited by Fritz Springmeier as one of the bloodlines of the illuminati. If this is correct, then we have in this film an illuminati member conveying that group's very mindset through cinema. We are being invited, seduced even, into putting our mundane sense or morality aside and seeing beauty where others see cruelty.

It is not for everyone perhaps but to me, a morality that is completely alien to civil society was communicated effectively. It's something that, in essence, cannot entirely be reduced to words. And that, of course, is the point of cinema. As such, this film employs cinema for what the medium is best at: communicating things with a degree of impressionism.

10/10. Thus film belongs to the absolute top as far as I'm concerned.

Snatch: I think it's Guy Richie's most entertaining and clever movie (as writer and director), almost as much as 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels' two years earlier (which he also cast). Matthew Vaughan, producer, also contributed significantly to these movies, and would later do 'Layer Cake' and 'Kick-Ass', which are similarly entertaining and clever. These films lampoon criminal culture associated with London and international crime, while offering believable insight into aspects of that criminal world. They're incredibly well-written, acted, directed, and produced. The dog should get an Academy Award.

Midsommar: My first impression of this movie in 2019 was that required the patience of Job to watch it, because the characters aren't initially interesting in any way. My second thought at that time is that Florence Pugh carried it brilliantly, along with some of her younger colleagues. In the same year she was the star in 'Fighting with My Family', which I recommend, and 'Little Women' (ain't seen it). Seems she was a proper star thereafter, though she had been in various other productions. Written by Ari Astor (a dude, in reply to a question yesterday), it appears to be his second big hit, after Hereditary (ain't seen it) and he would go on to produce horror films, including 'Bugonia', which I recommend. It's seemingly inspired by Wicker Man, but with greater depth of development and gore, and I think it's more entertaining than Wicker Man.