"Midsommar" Demonic induction from fear to "empathy" - A love story that erases the ego

Love story-like “accumulation of emotions”

I have written several times that ``Midsommar'' is a love story, but what kind of logic is essential to a love story? The first thing that comes to mind is "empathy." When you find a link between the main character's actions and thoughts and yourself, a mere fiction transforms into something more urgent for the audience.

Then, they agree and say, ``I understand!'' or they argue, ``That's not true!'' The joy and sadness turns into joy. The appeal of a love story lies in the way it traces one's own personality into the characters.

When I disassemble Midsommar from this perspective, I am surprised at how carefully the ``emotional accumulation'' is carefully calculated and arranged to evoke empathy. From here, let's take a look at the relationship between Danny and Christian from the beginning.

“Midsommar” (c)2019 A24 FILMS LLC. All Rights Reserved.

At the beginning, Danny receives a Arrival from his sister threatening suicide and struggles with whether or not to call Christian. This appearance and the explanation to his friend vividly depicts that the two do not have a relationship where they can ``share everything'' with each other.

Next, Christian side's ``argument'' is depicted, and his friends recommend breaking up with Danny, who is a ``heavy woman'', and Christian also wants to do it, but because Danny is mentally unstable, it is difficult to do so. You will understand things that you cannot say. Later, the "guy time" is interrupted by a phone call from Danny, who has lost control of himself, and his friends become increasingly frustrated.

Then, at the party, Danny gets upset when he learns that Christian was secretly planning to go on a trip to Sweden with his friends (and the trip coincided with Danny's birthday). Christian, who hates conflicts, replies, ``Then let's go together (I'm sure you'll refuse anyway...)'' but Danny replies, ``I'll go.'' Then, one by one, Danny, Christian, and their friends head to Holga...

“Midsommar” (c)2019 A24 FILMS LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Even after arriving at Holga, Danny's thoughts are quite parallel, ``I'm afraid Christian will break up with me,'' and Christian's ``I want to break up with him, but I want to be kind to him after something happened to my family.'' line. The ``incidents'' such as Christian forgetting Danny's birthday and the appearance of a village woman who has feelings for Christian are precisely placed, and their severity gradually increases.

And this is also a clever move, but at the beginning Danny's impression of being an ``unstable, heavy woman'' with a negative side stands out, and Christian's position as ``a boyfriend who is being manipulated by a troublesome woman''. , which becomes reversed as the story progresses. The part may differ depending on the viewer, but there is no doubt that ``I forgot my birthday'' was a major trigger. This is also a technique to guide the audience's psychology by skillfully using ``empathy.'' I thought to myself, ``It's terrible that I forgot my lover's birthday when I was alone for the rest of my life!'' But in the end, the audience takes Danny's side. The way the villagers of Holga are depicted changes to match this "movement".

The impression of the work changes depending on the perspective of men and women