Fans of the critically acclaimed horror film Midsommar are definitely going to want to see this. The extended director’s cut of Ari Aster’s trippy sophomore flick is debuting in theaters this Friday. The latest edition, which premiered in New York City earlier this month, is approximately thirty minutes longer than the original and features even more disturbing content that almost secured the R-rated movie an NC-17.
Aster’s eerie follow-up to his beloved debut Hereditary has been a hit with critics and audiences alike. The thriller is disturbingly violent and graphic, which is why it spent six weeks being rated NC-17 before the filmmaker went back to the drawing board to edit the feature down in order to appease the Motion Picture Association of America. They finally agreed to give it an R, but not before a good chunk of the flick’s brutality was cut out.
Now, audiences will be able to experience the full three-hour story just as Aster intended it to be. All of the unsettling scenes that were removed from the theatrical version will likely be added back in. Little is known about this edited version as of yet, but the director did reveal that viewers can expect the following:
“A more nuanced picture of Harga, more rituals and more nuance for the relationship between Dani and Christian, and more by way of the thesis competition between Josh and Christian.”
Moviegoers should therefore also expect more plot devices, more character development, more nudity, more violence and more all-around weirdness. Much like the theatrical edition, it definitely won’t be a film for the faint of heart. Still, anyone who needs more of this bizarre cult universe in their life should definitely head to the nearest theater this weekend and pick up tickets for the extended director’s cut of Midsommar.