Ari Aster’s film, Eddington, unfolds in May 2020, placing its story during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and the surge of protests sweeping the United States. This dark Western deconstruction explores the conflict between Joe Cross (Joaquin Phoenix), the town’s sheriff, and Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal), the incumbent mayor running for re-election, against a backdrop of lockdowns and Black Lives Matter demonstrations. Aster’s storytelling captures the tense atmosphere of a society on edge, highlighting how justice and power are contested when the usual order begins to unravel.
True to Ari Aster’s style, Eddington blends unsettling dread with satirical elements, emphasizing chaos and societal fracture rather than offering straightforward resolution. Set in a small desert town in New Mexico, the film’s events show how extreme circumstances, fear, and division distort notions of justice, freedom, and leadership.
Echoes of Classical Westerns: The Significance of Watching ‘Young Mr. Lincoln’
The film’s tribute to classic Western cinema is clear, with Ari Aster invoking the works of John Ford, who profoundly shaped the American West’s mythology on screen. Unlike many filmmakers who quietly label their work as Westerns, Eddington boldly embraces the genre. The story involves archetypal figures clashing over control and justice, much like a traditional Western, but placed in a chaotic modern era.
Near the film’s conclusion, a paralyzed Joe Cross watches Ford’s 1939 film Young Mr. Lincoln alongside his mother, Dawn (Deirdre O’Connell). This moment is striking: the historical depiction of Abraham Lincoln, portrayed by Henry Fonda, defending due process against a violent mob contrasts sharply with the broken contemporary world of Eddington. Lincoln’s calm insistence on legal order serves as a poignant counterpoint to Joe’s current reality, where due process and rational leadership feel fragile and distant.
Deconstructing Justice and Heroism in a Fractured World
While Young Mr. Lincoln presents an idealized vision of law triumphing over vigilantism and corruption, Eddington subverts this theme with a darker tone and a more cynical outlook. Aster’s film suggests that the idea of one noble individual restoring order in a chaotic world is outdated and unrealistic in today’s polarized climate. Joe Cross, despite representing law enforcement, is depicted as flawed and unpredictable, embodying the extremism and disconnection characteristic of society during the pandemic era.
As the local community around Eddington fractures, splits deepen between residents who side with the sheriff or the mayor, reflecting the real-world tensions experienced during the 2020 lockdowns and protests. Aster uses this setting to explore how traditional concepts of justice are challenged when fear, misinformation, and societal fatigue disrupt social cohesion. Joe’s efforts to uphold freedom and security echo Henry Fonda’s depiction of Lincoln attempting to rally a hostile crowd, but this time his appeals largely fall flat amid widespread distrust and agitation.
In a somber final note, Joe’s incapacitation and witnessed struggle allude to the fading myth of the Western hero. Though parallels to Ford’s protagonists persist, Aster’s sardonic filmmaking questions the sincerity of such figures as icons of justice, suggesting that flawed individuals like Joe Cross might have been the only semblance of stability during an overwhelming crisis.
Conflict Between Sheriff and Mayor Polarizes a Divided Town
Eddington’s central conflict ignites a wider community schism, with Joe Cross and Ted Garcia locked in a bitter standoff that fractures the town’s unity. The escalating tension between these leaders encapsulates the broader societal struggles of the moment, as residents are forced to take sides amid the pressures of pandemic restrictions and civil unrest. This clash is not just political but also deeply personal, testing friendships and longstanding bonds within the town.
The film’s blend of comedy and horror amplifies the absurdity and danger of the situation, illustrating how extreme fear and power struggles can escalate rapidly in isolated communities. As alliances shift and pressure mounts, the town of Eddington becomes a microcosm of the larger national scene, reflecting the fragmentation and uncertainty that marked the summer of 2020.
Ari Aster’s Dark Satire Signals a New Era for the Western
With Eddington, Ari Aster reinvents the Western genre for a fractured modern audience, stripping away romanticized ideals and exposing the chaotic realities of today’s social dynamics. His portrayal of divided characters who are simultaneously flawed and extreme presents a stark contrast to the mythic heroes of films like Young Mr. Lincoln or My Darling Clementine. These classical Westerns celebrated individual virtue overcoming corruption, but Aster’s film argues that such narratives may no longer resonate in a world defined by widespread distrust and ideological polarization.
The film’s ending, which reveals a looming corporate plan to transform Eddington into an AI server farm, further underscores themes of decline and loss of traditional values. In this setting, old hopes for justice embodied by figures like Lincoln or Ford’s heroes appear to be giving way to impersonal, technological forces shaping the future.
“Ari Aster cited the films of John Ford, who shaped our image of the American West for the forseeable future, as an influence on Eddington.” —Film Analyst
“Joe Cross does his best Henry Fonda impression by attempting to defuse situations and rally hostile forces together.” —Movie Critic
“The likes of Joe Cross were our only hope for sanity.” —Cultural Commentator
Principal Cast Brings Complex Characters to Life
The film features Joaquin Phoenix as Joe Cross, the sheriff whose moral ambiguity and personal struggles drive much of the narrative tension. Pedro Pascal plays Ted Garcia, the pragmatic and forceful mayor whose re-election campaign forms the backdrop for escalating conflict. These performances deepen the film’s exploration of leadership, division, and the contested meaning of justice in a time of crisis.
A Resonant Story for a Tumultuous Time
Eddington reflects on the surreal and violent upheavals of 2020, using the Western genre as a lens to examine contemporary social fissures and the eroding belief in justice as a unifying ideal. Ari Aster’s film challenges audiences to reconsider the myths of heroism and lawfulness that have long defined American storytelling, replacing them with a raw portrayal of chaos, extremism, and fractured community life. As society continues to grapple with polarized politics and evolving power structures, Eddington’s unsettling narrative resonates as a cautionary tale about the fragility of order in modern times.
