A24’s release of the Midsommar Director’s Cut sent ripples through horror Twitter when it was announced last month; the celebrated film became an obsession for fans, and though the brief theatrical and iTunes-exclusive release of Ari Aster’s director’s cut gained good notices, it had never been released onto Blu-ray until now. Is it worth the hype?

I’d say yes.

Midsommar has its share of detractors, and some have groused it’s overrated. I loved the film in its theatrical release. The engrossing, beautifully shot folk horror and the frightening, ornate rituals of its central cult contrasts with very real emotion and trauma in the form of its lead character, Dani (the mesmerizing Florence Pugh), reeling from the murder-suicide of her family and trapped in a toxic relationship with the selfish Christian (Jack Reynor). As I started watching the director’s cut I observed that, in adding mainly to the character oriented scenes and themes, it enhances what makes movies good in the first place.

We get more of the tortured dynamic between Dani and Christian that forms the backbone of the film. The uniformly strong acting buoys these and other dramatic scenes, like those expanding on the academic rivalry between Christian and Josh (William Jackson Harper), who’s aghast that his friend would blatantly poach his thesis topic. There’s also a telling moment in which Dani questions why Josh has a copy of The Secret Nazi Language of the Uthark, and Pelle (Vilhelm Blomgren) jokes that since his village learns the Runic alphabet, Josh “carries that around to annoy me.” Multiple writers have commented on a theme of White Supremacy that runs through the film, filled with Aryan villagers in white and marked by the deaths of people of color; Aster has confirmed in interviews that Hårga and its citizens are racist.

Those who hated the students will appreciate Dani calling them out directly in an argument with Christian: “Why would they trust us? You’re opportunistic anthropology students.” This scene also expands on Dani’s desire to leave after the grisly Attestupan suicide ritual, which softens the biggest issue I had with the movie: why wouldn’t the visitors just leave after that (Apart from because then there’d be no more movie, of course)?

She also hints at the very real danger facing them all by arguing that they’d never allow anyone to document their practices: “They depend on no one knowing about this ever.” That Christian would be too pig headed and stubborn to consider this is all too plausible given his character. It also shows that Dani has some sense of the threat Hårga presents, making it all the more tragic that she doesn’t follow this instinct. Given the constant gas lighting she’s been put through by Christian, though, that’s really no surprise; she’s been trained to doubt herself.

This cut also includes another ritual that threatens to be as deadly as the Attestupan, and which provides a clue to a character’s off-screen death. There are small additional details about Hårga throughout the film, including an expanded scene between Christian and village elder Siv (Gunnel Fred) in which she explicitly tells him that mating with Maja (Isabelle Grill) will “provide a unique glimpse into our sex rites.” The theatrical cut may be preferable in this instance, in that it very humorously ends with Christian commenting “I think I ate one of her pubic hairs.” Then again, Siv’s deadpan response, “Sounds about right,” is pretty funny in and of itself. The humor is even more prevalent in this version than it was in the theatrical release, which contrasted nicely with Aster’s relentlessly serious debut Hereditary.

A24 packages the disc nicely in a handsome yellow slipcover, with an appropriately folksy illustration of Dani in the iconic flower dress on the tray. There’s also a booklet with a short, incisive essay by Martin Scorsese — “it digs into emotions that are just as real and deeply uncomfortable as the ones shared between the characters in [Hereditary],” he observes — and Ragnar Persson’s artwork for the murals in the Youth House and Siv’s house. Such details are also fun to pause on the Blu-ray, and the format really makes the movie’s gorgeous visuals pop. Another choice freeze frame: the moment when villagers carry Dani aloft as the new May Queen, and, as eagle-eyed viewers pointed out, the image of her sister gassing herself to death is formed by the trees. This is definitely an enhanced edition of a terrific film for its fans — I will stick with this cut for future viewings — and perhaps detractors should give it a second look, too.

The Midsommar Director’s Cut is currently sold out, but A24films.com has an option to be notified when they restock. Hopefully a second printing is in the works.