Ann Whalen Webb

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Did not like this at all despite starring Michelle Yeoh. It was confusing, a little too proud of itself for being creative and unusual, and a little too woke for me, although not as woke as some movies I've seen recently. I struggle to find a message in all of it. Was not sure if it was about a mother and a daughter, the mother and a husband, or just family life in general. I watch to the end but it was overall not a fun experience.

Some of the reviews for this movie have legitimate gripes. Some scenes are absurd and the actual background of some pagan rituals are made up, but you cannot fault the acting of its lead, Florence Pugh. She plays a young woman who has to deal, mainly alone, with the tragedy of the suicide/murder of her family. Her boyfriend, who wants to break up with her but can't do it, is actually no help or support. He's just trying to be patient until she can "return to normal" and bother him no longer. I found the reviews of this film more disturbing than the movie. One reviewer thinks that the site of elderly naked women is laughable and disgusting. But, I see this touches at the heart of what this film is really about; finding your community of support, no matter how absurd it seems to those outside. Dani undergoes a journey far deeper than boyfriend revenge. She is part of a group of friends focused solely on the academic view of life; in other words, always observing it and never actually feeling it. They do not want to include her in their circle and certainly don't want her on the trip. They tolerate her presence, like most men who feel that girlfriends are meant for sex and little else. Just leave the academic stuff to the men, okay? Dani, who has suffered deep trauma, begins, with the help of the women of the community, to process her grief and trauma with their support, something that her boyfriend cannot do or is unwilling to give. Pelle's question is key, "Does he feel like home to you". The answer would be no. And the strongest scene of the film, where Dani has one of her panic attacks after seeing her boyfriend Christian being used for sperm with the chosen maiden, is one where the women breathe with her and experience her pain with her and help her calm herself. The chosen maiden simultaneously is supported by the elder women in what is perhaps her first sexual act. Powerful stuff for women. Absurd stuff to men. For me, it wasn't the naked women I found disgusting, but the gratuitous violence! See, that's the difference. We are okay with extreme violence, but not with the natural exposure of the female body. Despite it's storytelling inadequacies and its shocking and disgusting violence, Aster hits deep at the heart of what people need rather than what they want in a society where most people have lost touch with any deep emotions. It just happens to be set in the context of a "horror" movie. But perhaps that's the ultimate ironic fact of this film.

It started out well enough. Some good jump scares. Good topic: teens dealing with cancer. Then we get all the politically correct characters; at least 2 black characters, 2 asians, one white guy, one Christian girl who gets grief from everyone for genuinely being concerned about their souls, one gay guy and one bi girl, you get the picture. It's complete with foster parents, gay-hating parents, etc. I'm tired trying to sort it. The only performance that stands out is the headmistress doctor played by horror veteran Heather Langenkamp. Problem is, we never know what's going on and no answers are forthcoming even up to the surprise at the end. Promising, but pointless.