Horror specialist Ari Aster uses his favorite actor again and lets Phoenix suffer as a tragic sheriff.
One thing is quickly clear here: Ari Aster wants to depict the US world in miniature in his new film and chooses a fictional small town called Eddington in New Mexico. With this director, it goes without saying that it won't be an ideal world. The situation is getting worse in the Corona year 2020. The residents are in lockdown and all it takes in the tense situation is a small spark for everything to blow up and this society to sink into complete chaos.
Scene from “Eddington”
A sheriff with ambitions
The local sheriff Joe Cross (Joaquin Phoenix) actually has the makings of a loser: awkward, overweight, unprofessional and not very assertive, whether at work or at home, where there is an unstable woman (Emma Stone) whose only occupation is making bizarre dolls. His mother-in-law (Deirdre O'Connell) also lives there and annoys everyone with her constant conspiracy theories. It's not hard to make Cross seem like a joke.
Nevertheless, the man has greater ambitions: representing the law is not enough for him, but he wants to get into politics and already sees himself as Eddington's future mayor. It is clear that his plans are not met with any approval from the current incumbent (Pedro Pascal). There are also very personal reasons behind this publicly fought power struggle. But neither of them can imagine what catastrophe of violence and destruction this rivalry will bring about.
Thematic and provocative
With sharpness and bite, Aster dissects contemporary America mercilessly – but at the same time full of compassion for his characters. He has not yet produced a better or more important film. He takes up all the topics, developments, irritating words and slogans of the past few years and combines this mixture of anti-Covid opposition, Black Life Matters, victims of abuse, racism, activism, greed for profit, a Trump looming in the background and the omnipresent social media channels into a story of tragic consequence that reveals more and more potential for escalation – and since everything takes place in New Mexico, “Eddington” also presents itself over long stretches as a real neo-western, in which many Guns go off.
Scene from “Eddington”
Next Oscar in sight for Phoenix?
Pascal, who has unfortunately been seen all too often recently in all too similar roles, finally shows a pleasantly different side here. Emma Stone proves that she can handle demanding tasks even without Lanthimos' direction. Austin Butler appears in an important supporting role as a combative revivalist with a difficult past, and Joaquin Phoenix is in a league of his own – with his tragic sheriff character he clearly deserves another Oscar nomination. Aster clearly appreciates the strength of his leading actor, which is why he hired him again after “Beau Is Afraid”.
Sometimes you're immediately irritated and wonder whether the director's name isn't actually Martin McDonagh, because “Eddington” proves to be a worthy work as a follow-up to “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” (which can't be a coincidence given the choice of almost identical place names). This evil small town thriller is definitely one of the most exciting and important films of the year that you shouldn't miss. Maybe he seems too cynical to some people, because Aster really does dish it out to all sides and no one at all. His characters often behave irrationally, thoughtlessly and meanly; But we all do that from time to time. That's life – and not just in Eddington, New Mexico.
5 out of 5 slaps for law enforcement