Movie Review: ‘Eddington’ July 21, 2025By John Mulderig OSV News Filed Under: Movie & Television Reviews NEW YORK (OSV News) – Adult viewers willing to grapple with harsh material will find that the well-crafted but bleak dark comedy “Eddington” (A24) inspires some uneasy laughs. Those in search of light entertainment, by contrast, should definitely look elsewhere. Writer-director Ari Aster uses the small fictitious New Mexico town of the title as a microcosm in which to examine the conflicts roiling contemporary American society. Central to the plot are the burg’s sheriff, Joe Cross (Joaquin Phoenix), and its mayor, Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal). When Joe impulsively decides to challenge Ted’s bid for reelection, their already uneasy relationship becomes a bitter rivalry, one that plays out against the backdrop of both the COVID pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement. Aster shows himself to be an equal opportunity satirist, skewering disease-denying rightwingers and loopy leftists alike. But when the pressure becomes too much for Joe and he reaches a breaking point, the story takes a profoundly disturbing turn. Along with the graphic mayhem that ensues, Aster adds in a child molestation theme. Joe’s troubled wife, Louise (Emma Stone), falls under the spell of Vernon Jefferson Peak (Austin Butler), a strangely charismatic online activist peddling a QAnon-style conspiracy theory. While the humor is often on-target, such challenging topics set a grim mood and the conclusion is as obsidian — and off-kilter — as what has gone before. “Eddington” thus registers as an insightful but unsettling piece of cinema exclusively suitable for the hardiest grown-ups. The film contains much bloody violence with images of mutilation, mature themes, including child sexual abuse, drug use, frontal male nudity in a nonsexual context, a couple of uses of profanity, about a half-dozen milder oaths, frequent rough language and considerable crude and crass talk. The OSV News classification is L — limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. The Motion Picture Association rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian. Read More Movie & TV Reviews Movie Review: ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ Movie Review: ‘The Dog Stars’ Home viewing roundup: What’s available to stream and what’s on the horizon Home viewing roundup: What’s available to stream and what’s on the horizon Movie Review: ‘Mutiny’ Movie Review: ‘Insidious: Out of the Further’ Copyright © 2025 OSV News Print
