Summary
Horror is a genre known for evoking fear in viewers, along with other emotions such as suspense and discomfort. While it encompasses a wide range of subgenres and styles, few horror films have been as visually stunning and psychologically haunting as Ari Aster’sMidsommar. The 2019 movie combines the disturbing rituals of a cult with a bright and breathtaking visual aesthetic. It received critical acclaim and earned a strong following.
Those who were blown away by the film’s eerie beauty and exploration of the human soul may be delighted to learn that they can get a similar experience again, from a lesser-known film that shares many of the elements that makeMidsommarsuch a memorable watch: Nicolas Winding Refn’sThe Neon Demon.
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Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn gained wider recognition and critical acclaim in 2011 for the action drama filmDrive. In 2016, he directed the psychological surreal horrorThe Neon Demon, which he also co-wrote and produced. Much likeMidsommar,The Neon Demonstands out from other horror films due to its stunning and distinctive visual style, opting for surreal and elegant settings with bright neon lights rather than outdoor landscapes and sunlight. Both films succeed in presenting horror in a visually stunning way, blurring the lines between the beautiful and the macabre.The Neon Demonperformed poorly at the box officeand was pretty divisive amongst its audience, but the consensus about the impact of its disturbing and stunning visuals was nearly always positive. While it may not be a watch suitable for everyone, it is a great addition to the watchlist of any fan of the horror genre, cult classics, Winding Refn’s previous work, or Aster’s work and visual style.
Ari Aster
Writer
Screenplay by Nicolas Winding Refn, Mary Laws, Polly Stenham. Story by Nicolas Winding Refn
Release date
117 minutes
148 minutes
Box office
$3.4 million
$48 million
The Neon Demonfollows Jesse (Elle Fanning), a young aspiring model who moves to Los Angeles to pursue her dream ofmaking it big in the fashion industry. She starts out as an innocent newcomer in a cutthroat industry that she so desperately wants to be part of. As she navigates the fashion world, she begins to gain success and lets it get to her head. She becomes consumed by the industry and loses her innocence along the way. Jesse’s rise to fame sparks jealousy and envy amongst others in the industry, and her beauty ends up becoming both a blessing and a curse. Director Nicolas Winding Refn stated,during an interview with Esquire, that beauty can be both superficial and extremely complex, and it is a subject everybody has an opinion about.
Beauty can be very dismissive, or it can be very cruel, but it can also be very beautiful, and satisfying. It can also be vulgar and campy.
The film presents many elements inspired by film noir,as seen in other works by Nicolas Winding Refn. It is a commentary on beauty, obsession, and the pursuit of perfection, and how that is always accompanied by narcissism, shallowness, envy, and manipulation. While the horror inThe Neon Demonis mostly psychological and due to its unsettling atmosphere, it also showcases the extreme lengths people are willing to go to maintain their position at the top. It also features surreal and gruesome scenes and shocking twists that keep the audience engaged throughout, although it does so with a unique visual style that makes everything appear haunting, grotesque, and beautiful simultaneously.
How Is The Neon Demon Similar to Midsommar?
At first glance, it may not seem likeThe Neon DemonandMidsommarhave much in common. Perhaps the one thing that comes to mind when comparing them is the fact that both films have a visual stylenot often seen in the horror genre. Both Natasha Braier and Pawel Pogorzelski use cinematography to portray the horror in seemingly beautiful settings, even sharing some similar visual elements, such as the use of triangles, mirrors, and haunting close-ups that portray the emotions and character development of the protagonists without the need for dialogue.
In terms of visuals,The Neon Demonpresents an immersive nighttime aesthetic of neon lights, high fashion, and combines it with haunting and surreal dreamlike scenarios, which highlights the allure of the fashion industry and the sinister darkness that comes with it. This, while opposite regarding the use of light, shares many similarities with the aesthetic ofMidrommar’s picturesque Swedish landscapes, which, contrasted with the disturbing rituals of the cult, creates an eerie and unsettling atmosphere.
More similarities betweenThe Neon DemonandMidsommar:
It is important to note that, although these similarities exist,The Neon DemonandMidsommarare unique films and have drastically different stories and settings, one exploring the fashion industry and beauty, and the other the eerie rituals of a Swedish cult. WhileThe Neon Demonhas a more urban and fashionable setting,Midsommartakes place in an open rural area. They both succeed in what they intend to portray, and stand their own ground within the horror genre.Midsommarrightfully managed to gain a huge fanbase, and whileThe Neon Demonflopped at the box office and remains largely unknown compared to some of Nicolas Winding Refn’s other work, it is an experience that deserves more recognition, and a must-watch for any fan of Ari Aster’s sophomore film.
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