Chelsea Alexandra
Blissful ignorance is often romanticized as a state of peace. For some, remaining blissfully unaware of the harsh bleak realities of everyday life sounds like its own freedom. In an age of doom scrolling on the internet and a 24-hour new cycle, the world can feel like a crushing weight slowly suffocating us, especially now. To be free from anxiety and stress and live in blissful ignorance sounds perfect right about now. Yet, this kind of ignorance can, in itself, become a prison, limiting one’s understanding, agency, and ability to engage meaningfully with the world. This “freedom” is illusory because it comes at the cost of autonomy. Having premiered at South by South West (SXSW), Glorious Summer is a visually stunning film that tells an unsettling tale about a seemingly perfect existence without the weight of knowledge that can turn into its prison.
Set in a sun-drenched Renaissance palace, the story follows three women (played by Daniela Komedera, Magdalena Fejdasz and Helena Ganjalyan) living a responsibility-free existence. Each day, the three young women come together to declare why it was a glorious day. Their needs are met by an unseen force and their days are shaped by wellness rituals. Throughout the day, wellness mantras echo around them, gentle reminders to keep their minds light and their hearts untroubled. Their world is designed for them to be free from worry and free from questions about what lies beyond the walls. They can soak up the sun, prance through the garden, and play in the small pool blissfully ignorant of the true reality. Free from having any thoughts and freedom, they are only bound to one rule, never to leave the confines of the surrounding walls.
Over time, it’s clear that the women become curious about what is happening outside of the walls and why their “freedom” feels like a prison they are desperate to escape. They begin to see the cracks in their perfect lives and are determined to see what is beyond the wall. They are ready to go to “another place”. To continue to communicate without anyone listening to their conversations, the women begin to use “touch language.” They quietly rehearse the art of dying—believing it to be their passage to “another place.” Long-buried anger begins to rise to the surface, and an urgent hunger for escape takes hold. However, it is a matter of if they can.
Much like the works of Sofia Coppola, Glorious Summer is aesthetically pleasing to the eye and moves with an intoxicating slowness. The film unfolds like a fever dream, blurring the lines between utopia and imprisonment. Every lingering glance, every measured silence, every sun-drenched frame adds to the creeping sense of unease. Days are stretched on in a loop of pleasure and ritual. Yet, as time passes, the beauty takes on an eerie quality. Their bliss is too precise, their peace too practiced. The film doesn’t rush to reveal its truths; instead, it lets them bloom gradually. Once in full bloom, the film hits its stride. This type of pacing may not work for some viewers who are looking for twists and turns, who are looking for a physical threat creeping around the corner. For those drawn to atmospheric storytelling the looming faceless threat that is everywhere would create a stomach-turning unease that will be appreciated once the film ends.
The performances are mesmerizing with each actress embodying a blend of innocence, quiet defiance, and aching desire to escape. Their sisterhood feels both intimate and fragile, a bond formed not by choice but by necessity. They cling to each other because they must. And yet, their love for one another is shaped entirely by their circumstances. Stripped of the ability to form relationships beyond their trio, their care for one another is not born from true freedom of choice but from the simple fact that there is no one else. Their unity is both their greatest strength and their most profound limitation.
The women, once content in their ignorance, begin to sense the invisible hands that keep them in place. Their ignorance is not just encouraged, it is enforced. Daily affirmations reinforce their contentment, while their structured routines ensure they never have to wonder what lies beyond the walls. Their lives appear effortless, blissful even. The picturesque backdrop that surrounds them cages them in with invisible bars. Their ignorance once protected them from fear, but it also robbed them of freedom. In this way, Glorious Summer becomes more than just a story of captivity. It asks the question: is ignorance truly bliss?
