Midsommar is a 2019 folk horror film and Ari Aster’s second feature film following Hereditary. It’s an unsettling daylight horror with beautiful visuals that contrast with violent imagery.
Midsommar is one of a growing number of atmospheric, cinematic, and well-crafted horror movies that have found critical success in recent years without the cheap jump scares and oversaturation of gore that some audiences have gotten accustomed to. While the 1980s remain the best era for horror, according to one Rotten Tomatoes article, 2019 has been the most critically successful year for horror since then. Here are 10 films, both old and new, that capture the spirit of exquisite and exceptionally made horror films like Midsommar.
Jaws
Steven Spielberg’s Jaws came out of a bestselling book of the same name in 1975, and to this day, it’s considered one of the best horror films ever made, and the first major motion picture to be shot in the ocean. Because of the unique circumstances of being shot on water, the film infamously had to overcome a whole host of problems during production.
Like Midsommar, most of Jaws takes place during broad daylight, which in some ways makes it even more disturbing and unnerving.
Get Out
Get Out was Jordan Peele’s first feature film under his direction, and the beginning of his career switch from comedy to horror. With a slow-burn pace and a modest budget under five million dollars, it quickly became a huge financial and critical success.
With the high popularity of fast-paced action-packed films, some of the more slow-burning films can be frustrating or uninteresting for audience members. But the success of Get Out and Midsommar shows that there are still plenty of movie-goers that appreciate a film that takes its time and that viewers can learn to appreciate the slow build of tension and uneasiness over the quick jump scares of a horror film.
Dawn Of The Dead
There’s a lot to choose from when it comes to films that feature zombies, but when asked which one is best, plenty of horror fans point to one of the original zombie classics. The 1978 classic, Dawn of the Dead, was an independent film and an international collaboration between Italian and American filmmakers. It’s considered one of the greatest zombie films in history, and the second of a series of zombie films by George A. Romero.
Dawn of the Dead has secured its place in pop culture and horror film history because it has more to offer than just gruesome violence; the film also has undertones of social commentary that adds to the story, making it more thought-provoking and dynamic. Horror films like Dawn of the Dead and Midsommar both have strong storylines that offer more engagement than they would with just scares and a flimsy or cookie-cutter story.
The Thing
The Thing was a science fiction horror film that came right out of the golden age of horror in 1982 but unlike many of the other films on this list, it was met with poor reviews, initially. Some critics found the film too nihilistic and gruesome and it wasn’t until years later that it garnered a cult following and a great appreciation for its visual effects that were well ahead of its time.
Both Midsommar and The Thing contain a lot of psychological elements that elevate the story, and feelings of paranoia, mistrust, and fear are as equally detrimental and dangerous to the characters as the alien monster and cult members. Horror movies that showcase the dangers of the human mind can take scary to a whole new level.
The Witch
The Witch is another recently made slow-burn horror film from a first-time director of a feature. Robert Eggers and his production team took painstaking efforts to make the film historically accurate to the time period, working with museums and reading through old letters from the mid-1600s.
To add to the authenticity, The Witch was also mainly shot using natural lighting. The result was a horror film that, like Midsommar, was as beautiful as it was frightening.
Children Of The Corn
The 1984 film Children Of The Corn is another folk horror that deals with cults. But unlike Midsommar, it has more supernatural elements in addition to creepy and violent rituals.
Children Of The Corn is a film adaptation from one of Stephen King’s short stories, and there have been several other adaptations since then, though less successful than the 1984 version. While not as critically successful as the other films on this list, it made number seven on Rolling Stone’s list of top 30 Stephen King films.
The Invitation
Directed by Karyn Kusama, The Invitation is another great slow-burn horror. With a tiny budget of 1 million, The Invitation received critical acclaim at its premiere at the SXSW Film Festival and was praised for its cleverness.
Similar to Midsommar, The Invitation features a cult that seems benevolent at first, but as more and more details come to light and the tension grows, the characters realize there’s something sinister going on. The Invitation had a limited release and wasn’t initially available to stream, but now it’s available to buy or rent on Amazon.
The Birds
One of Alfred Hitchcock’s best movies, The Birds is a natural horror film most enthusiasts are familiar with. This is another critically acclaimed film that is considered culturally significant; so much so that its preserved in the Library of Congress.
Midsommar has a lot of emotional tension, and The Birds has a lot of it as well, especially at the beginning of the film. The emotional tension of the characters adds a lot to the overall uneasy feelings that both of these films give viewers.
It Follows
2014 gave moviegoers It Follows, a psychological horror film packed with disturbing images and high tension. Director David Robert Mitchell said that he based the film on a series of recurring anxiety dreams that he had when he was young.
The film uses a lot of wide shots that add to the tension of the scene, which is something you can also find in Midsommar.
Rosemary’s Baby
Rosemary’s Baby was a groundbreaking psychological horror that shook audiences to their core in 1968. Another film based on a novel, Rosemary’s Baby deals heavily with paranoia, as well as devil-worshiping cults. It’s widely regarded as a work of art. It doesn’t have much violence and gore, but instead relies on fighting concepts and psychological terror.
One of the most frightening aspects of the film is the fact that Mia Farrow’s character, Rosemary, doesn’t have much agency in the film. Even her doctor is turned against her, believing her to be delusional. The characters in Midsommar go through a similar torment, but Dani eventually finds solace and belonging among the commune.
