There is nothing American about assisted suicide

Published January 12, 2026 5:00pm ET



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The turning point in Ari Aster’s chilling horror film Midsommar comes when an elderly man and woman jump off a cliff. The film’s main characters, visiting from America and the United Kingdom, are viscerally horrified to see members of a Swedish cult suddenly commit ritual suicide. While the cult members look on peacefully, their disgusted counterparts are screaming. When one of the jumpers fails to die immediately, things get even uglier.

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