I couldn’t believe how much this film captured the ridiculousness of 2020.
Eddington isn’t another stylish A24 drama with a dash of Ari Aster’s usual darkness, it’s a wild, twisted Western where you spend two hours reflecting on the pandemic paranoia, political nonsense, and small-town ego wars.
Plot Summary of Eddington (Spoiler-Free)
Set in New Mexico in May 2020, Eddington follows a town caught between two titanic egos, Sheriff Joe Cross (Joaquin Phoenix) and Mayor Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal), and at first glance, it’s just a story about a local standoff, but the film runs much deeper.
Cross and Garcia clash over pandemic rules, racial tensions, and a slew of personal grudges, including a past romantic entanglement with Joe’s wife, Louise (Emma Stone).
As their feud intensifies, the town feels the consequences. Citizens are trapped between these two stubborn men who believe they alone can “solve” the problems of the world, while everyone else just tries not to get caught in the crossfire.
The movie mixes personal drama, political satire, and social commentary, all wrapped up in a Western-style standoff that grows increasingly absurd as the film progresses.
Eddington Review: Is It Worth Watching?
If you came in expecting a traditional Western or your usual Ari Aster fare, this is neither. I give Eddington an 7.5/10, and that might even be generous depending on how much you’re willing to embrace the chaos.
It’s a a movie that grabs you immediately just by its sheer audacity. It’s 2025, and I’m watching a Western about COVID, and somehow it makes sense, well, it sort of does, if you accept that small-town politics in a pandemic is basically a pressure cooker for human stupidity.
The first thing that hits you is just how relatable, and yet ridiculous, everything feels. Watching Phoenix’s Sheriff Cross argue about mask mandates while Pascal’s Garcia tries to follow the rules felt like being back in Zoom meeting hell with a side of small-town gossip.
And it’s funny because the arguments aren’t abstract, they’re grounded in things people actually did, said, or thought in 2020, but Aster turns up the dial so high that it’s almost absurdist comedy. I found myself laughing out loud, and then a second later realizing, yeah, this was basically real life.
The cast in Eddington are phenomenal. Joaquin Phoenix is, predictably, intense, but he’s also oddly funny. Cross could have been a total paranoid man-child, but Phoenix layers him with frustration, stubbornness, and that weird charm that makes you almost forgive him for being an absolute nightmare.
Pedro Pascal as Garcia is more measured, but that contrast makes their feud even better, and Emma Stone as Louise adds this understated tension to the mix, with her cold detachment from Cross not just being drama filler either.
Aster’s direction is as sharp as ever, too, and he somehow manages to turn conversations about masks, lockdowns, and protests into scenes that are tense, funny, and uncomfortable all at once, without lecturing or moralizing.,
The pacing was a small issue for me, while for others I can see it being an even bigger issue, because it does drag occasionally, where you are wishing the film would just move on, and I think trimming ten to fifteen minutes would have made it all feel a lot sharper.
And while I liked that the film doesn’t shy away from difficult topics such as racism and police misconduct, it did feel like Aster was trying to jugge too many balls at times, and while I appreciate the ambition, it would have been better if he had picked a lane and stuck with it.
But with that said, I still enjoyed Eddington overall, and while it is a dark, sarcastic, and sometimes an uncomfortable film, it’s also consistently clever, and it captures that weird blend of fear, stubbornness, and self-righteousness that defined so many peoples pandemic experiences so well at times.
But it’s that that combination of tension, absurdity, and dark humor which is exactly why I think the movie works, as Aster trusts the audience to follow along with the ridiculousness, and I always appreciate that.
What I liked (And What I Didn’t like)
Pros
Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal
Their energy and chemistry make the central feud believable, and surprisingly funny at times.
Dark, Sarcastic Humor
It’s funny without it ever undercutting anything else, which is hard to do with such heavy subject matter.
Clever Satire
Aster takes real frustrations from 2020 and exaggerates them just enough to make you laugh and groan simultaneously.
Emma Stone
Her cold, awkward interactions add extra layers to the domestic tension without ever overshadowing the main conflict.
The Absurdity and Realism
Even though it’s obviously exaggerated, you can still connect with the real frustrations of 2020 some of us felt.
Social Issues
Pandemic rules, racial tensions, and small-town politics are all explored without ever feeling preachy, and credit must goto Aster for that.
Cons
Supporting Characters
A few of the deputies and townsfolk could have used a bit more screen time..
Pacing Drags At Times
The film could have easily been trimmed a bit without losing anything.
The Runtime
It asks for patience, and not everyone will be willing to give it what it needs, and I get that.
Minor Plot Points
A few of the narrative threads just get dropped, leaving some unanswered questions.
Who Might Like Eddington
- People who enjoy dark comedy and satireary
- Fans of Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal
- Those who appreciate absurdist Westerns
- Anyone interested in small-town political satire
- People who enjoy films that make you laugh and groan at the same time
Who Might Dislike Eddington
- Audiences looking for a traditional Western
- People easily annoyed by over-the-top satire
- Those who dislike long runtimes
- Anyone wanting tightly resolved plotlines
- Fans of purely dramatic or horror-focused Ari Aster films
- Those who don’t enjoy sarcasm and dark humor
Final Verdict: Did I Enjoy Watching Eddington?
Eddington is chaotic, over-the-top, and sometimes frustrating, but that’s also exactly the point. Aster captures the stupidity, ego, and fear of that year perfectly, turning it into something that’s funny, unsettling, and strangely peaceful all at once.
It’s not perfect, but for those willing to embrace the absurdity, it’s a film that will make you both reflect and laugh.
Eddington Trailer
Simon Leasher
A lover of cinema for over 35 years, I have watched many films from around the world in many different genres, yet I still normally always come back to trashy slasher horror films when in doubt. More
And yes, The Godfather 2 is better than The Godfather.
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