This post contains spoilers for "Midsommar."

The arrival at Hårga village in Ari Aster's "Midsommar" seems harmonious at first — perhaps, a bit too harmonious, with everyone donning stark white and plastered smiles till the illusion of sanctity shatters. This happens halfway through the film after the first feast ends, where the oldest members of the commune wilfully jump off a cliff, completing the Ättestupa ritual in excessively violent ways. When the male elder is still alive after his jump, his legs bent and cracked due to the impact, the villagers mock his pain and smash his head in over and over with a massive mallet. The visceral shock of the scene is intensified by the anxiety of what might happen after, as it is clear that the Ättestupa is just the beginning of a fever dream designed to torment and disorient.

How was this visually shocking scene accomplished? The...