Eddington starring Joaquin Phoenix

The movie Eddington was released in July of 2025, a quasi modern day western with social media added in, the action is set in 2020 during the height of the covid pandemic and the George Floyd riots. It was directed by Ari Aster-who also directed both Midsommar and Hereditary-two movies I absolutely hated. This movie is rated R and it deserves it, there is a lot of violence. Eddington stars Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Luke Grimes, Deirdre O'Connell, Micheal Ward, Austin Butler, and Emma Stone. Although he appears in everything lately and is beginning to seem overused in my opinion, Pedro Pascal did not disappoint! The casting was perfect.

 

This was one of the most intense movies I have ever seen. It jumped up to being my fourth-favorite movie of all time–no small accomplishment. Joaquin Phoenix is in the majority of scenes and he really earns it. This movie has extremes from both right and left; it deals with the never-ending frustration of the covid pandemic and the misinformation that accompanied it. There are riots, out of control cops, lying politicians, government conspiracies, and plenty of spoiled, stupid teenage kids.

 

The movie begins with an insane man walking through the desert, heading toward the fictional town of Eddington, New Mexico. There, Sheriff Joe Cross (Phoenix) and Mayor Ted Garcia (Pascal) are at each other's throats long before mask mandates drive further wedges into an already tense situation. Garcia is up for reelection and is determined to make sure all covid restrictions–no matter how frivolous–are followed. He is also attempting to keep his teenage son under control. Sheriff Cross uses covid overreach and a rape allegation against Garcia to start his own campaign for mayor, and posts it on social media.

 

While this builds, the white teenagers of Eddington begin protesting against police brutality and causing problems in the streets, it is pointed out there is only one black person in town, and he is a deputy sheriff. Sheriff Cross also has to deal with the Tribal Police Department, with whom he has always had a difficult relationship. There’s also a campaign against data centers being built in the desert; in addition to locals, outsiders come to town to further rock this boat. This movie starts out soft and stays that way for the first 25 minutes or so, then it takes off at a dead run and doesn’t slow down until the end. I have always been a sucker for movies that have gatling guns; one of the coolest scenes I have ever seen in a movie involves Sheriff Cross shooting up empty city streets after being chased for miles through the desert.

 

The only problem I had with this movie was how the sheriff ends up framing one of the deputies and the only reason I can see for doing so was a simple plot device, but it does give birth to a bittersweet ending. Other than that single issue, I assure you the script was sound. This movie will make your heart beat faster! If nothing else, check out the movie poster, that’s really cool too!