Dr Zuleyka Zevallos

Josh relies on a White male friend as his guide in an all-White cult. He doesn't fear for his safety when the only other 2 #POC go missing. The early deaths of the only Black & Brown characters speaks to the film's whiteness, especially with the iconography it uses. #BadSciFilmpic.twitter.com/cenKMdM5pZ

Many cultures burn ritualistic effigies (including mine), but 'sacrificing' disposable #POC in this context has deeper & more troubling meaning, even when filmmakers aren't conscious. The point is they should be, as POC academics have written about this for decades. #BadSciFilmpic.twitter.com/isKEmLiqbA

Josh comes into conflict with Christian, a White male anthropologist who has yet to pick a thesis topic. Setting aside that it's inconceivable, as he wouldn't be accepted into a PhD program without a topic - a White man stealing a Black man's research is infuriating & probable!pic.twitter.com/nmuhf2IbAZ

These social scientists are competitive, without any cultural respect for their potential participants. Christian has read no literature. No one checks the ableism of using a 'disfigured' boy as an 'oracle,' or repeating descriptions of him as a product of incest. #BadSciFilmpic.twitter.com/2ncbZzQOAf

TW suicide: Dani is a White woman who also has a mental illness. The film has some interesting commentary about women having to sublimate grief for the sake of selfish partners. Nevertheless, Dani witnesses ritual suicides & remains at the commune. Awful plotting. #BadSciFilmpic.twitter.com/P9yTEil12j

The filmmaker, who is highly skilled, clever & a striking storyteller, has said the story operates as a break up film. Some viewers see it as fairytale (the origins of these are highly violent). None of this excuses the logic of whiteness & ableism used in the plot. #BadSciFilmpic.twitter.com/c9E28JKpib

Aster's portrayal of White women's grief in his films is highly effective. Midsommar is also very precise in its depiction of the social experience of hallucinogenic drug use (norms about sharing the timing & policing their space 'Everybody lie down!' 'I don't like new people!').pic.twitter.com/k4BqqtpO7X

Christian's cowardice (can't break up with Dani, but is planning to go overseas). Dani's obervations of her relationship (Christian doesn't remember her birthday, but 'it's my fault, I forgot to remind him' ). All smartly done. Race & ableism are also choices. #BadSciFilmpic.twitter.com/sOhaKaGhqj

White male filmmakers can imagine all sorts of worlds. They read widely to flesh out ideas. They inject realistic details because it helps audiences suspend disbelief. But they fail to do diligence on race & disability. Social science is also shabbily treated. Why? #BadSciFilmpic.twitter.com/4XURGV5mZf

In short, White men imagine that Black anthropologists would risk their lives, because White men don't have to think about race as they move through the world. They think women's experience of suicide is genderless, because men don't see how their gender shapes them. #BadSciFilmpic.twitter.com/nBvsX7jCKq

White abled men think that creating a White disabled character who never speaks is a minor detail, even when condescending (he has 'pure' insight due to 'different cognition') and whose origins are socially engineered ('inbred' specifically to play this function). #BadSciFilmpic.twitter.com/540vlYvgS3

The film is conscious enough of disability to include Auslan clapping as the primary way to show public appreciation, but disinterested in the lives of disabled people. They are just an oddity who exist to pass divination - that's then 'interpreted' by abled people #BadSciFilmpic.twitter.com/vcXXjyUiB5