A whole lot of potential that slowly fizzles out

Rating: 7/10 (1 December 2019)

My rating of 7 is mostly for the visuals, which are in fact stunning. The horror aspects are intertwined with the beautiful in a unique and thoroughly unsettling way. However, the movie's length undercuts the tension at every turn. Sequences that need about 30 seconds get 10 minutes. The drug sequences are especially tedious. Every time a character takes a drink, prepare yourself for 15 minutes of weird daze-cam. Most disappointingly, the relationships crafted masterfully at the beginning never reach a convincing catharsis point.
That said, Aster delivers visually in a way few horror films manage, and the theme of self-serving "educational vacations" is quite well played out. For instance, an especially disquieting scene involves a character reacting to an extremely disturbing cultural practice with excitement for being able to use it for his research.
Visuals: 9/10.
Acting: 9/10.
Scary: 4/10.
Too long: yes.