
In 'Eddington,' Ari Aster revisits the 'living hell' of COVID-19
Five years ago, when a pandemic and safety protocols further divided a politically tumultuous America, 'I was just living in hell and I thought I should make a movie about that,' the director says of his new drama 'Eddington' (in theaters now). 'It felt like things were poised to really explode in a new way. And to be honest, that feeling has not left since. But at that moment, it suddenly felt like, 'OK, I haven't experienced this before.'
'I just wanted to get it down on paper and describe the structure of reality at the moment, which is that nobody can agree on what is happening.'
Aster's filmography is full of horror ('Hereditary,' 'Midsommar') and comedic absurdity ('Beau Is Afraid'), and with 'Eddington,' he revisits the absurd horror movie we all experienced in real life.
Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY's movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox
Set in New Mexico during 2020, the movie centers on the fictional town of Eddington, which turns into a hotbed of bad feelings and controversy when awkward local sheriff Joe Cross (Joaquin Phoenix) decides to run for mayor against popular progressive incumbent Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal). Their feud turns increasingly personal and spills onto social media and the streets, and the situation ultimately grows explosive, bloody and downright bonkers.
Some scenes are a stark reminder of the time: For example, Sheriff Joe moseys into a grocery store without his mask – as an asthmatic, he's not a big fan of personal protective equipment – and gets an earful from Ted and his fellow residents. To build his narrative, Aster took a lot of notes during lockdown, 'living on Twitter and taking a lot of screenshots,' he says. The director went so far as to create multiple Twitter accounts, so he could create 'different algorithms' for varying ideologies.
Aster built a cast of characters to run that gamut. Joe's malleable wife Louise (Emma Stone) falls under the sway of both her conspiracy theorist mom (Deirdre O'Connell) and the charismatic leader (Austin Butler) of a QAnon-type cult. And when George Floyd protests make it to Eddington, they involve a Black police deputy (Micheal Ward) and a teen boy (Cameron Mann) doing some performative activism to woo a girl he likes.
'It is a satire," Aster says, but the real object of criticism is social media and 'the maligned forces that have harnessed that technology to get us here and to divide us.'
'I wanted to make a film that was empathetic to all the characters. It's just that it's empathetic in multiple different directions and some of those are opposition.'
Since the pandemic, there have been movies set during COVID-19, but 'Eddington' is the most high-profile project to really explore how it isolated neighbors from each other, literally and politically, and exacerbated an existing culture war.
'We haven't metabolized what happened in 2020 or how seismic COVID was. One reason for that is that we are still living through it,' Aster explains. 'That was an inflection point whose consequences are very hard to measure, but they're huge. And it's an unpleasant thing to look at. And the future is a scary thing to look at right now."
Aster acknowledges he's desperate for a vision of the future that's "not totally defined by the dread that I'm feeling. I wrote this movie in a state of anxiety and dread, and that dread only continues to intensify."
While many navigated the COVID-19 lockdown by binge-watching 'Tiger King,' Aster had a different ritual to find his happy place. Quarantined in New Mexico, where Aster has spent much of his life, he found a 'pretty comforting' routine of walking to a park and reading a book for two hours in the morning and returning in the afternoon for another hour or so. 'I really liked that. That, I already have nostalgia for,' he says, laughing.
While Aster did end up having a couple of rounds of COVID-19 ('Not fun'), there are very few sick people in 'Eddington.' One character has the coronavirus at the beginning, at least one other character has it by the end, but that's it. Instead, 'I'll just say there are a lot of viruses in the movie. A lot of things going viral,' he says.
He points out that another key subplot of 'Eddington' is the artificial intelligence-powered data center being built just outside of town. 'The movie is about a bunch of people navigating one crisis while another crisis incubates, waiting to be unleashed,' Aster says.
An idea for a sequel percolates in his mind, yet Aster would like to just live in a less-weird time, please.
'It's gotten incredibly weird. And with AI rushing toward us with the possibility of AGI (advanced AI that would match human thinking) and then maybe even superintelligence, things are only going to get stranger and stranger,' Aster says. 'The human capacity for adaptation is amazing, and things become normal very quickly, especially once they become wallpaper – all of this has become ambient.
'It's just important to remind ourselves, like, 'This is strange.' How do we hold onto that and maybe challenge it?'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


San Francisco Chronicle
38 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
At least 25 people killed by Israeli gunshots and strikes in Gaza, some while seeking aid
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — At least 25 people were killed by Israeli airstrikes and gunshots overnight, according to health officials and the ambulance service on Saturday, as ceasefire talks appear to have stalled and Palestinians in Gaza face famine. The majority of victims were killed by gunfire as they waited for aid trucks close to the Zikim crossing with Israel, said staff at Shifa hospital, where the bodies were brought. Those killed in strikes include four people in an apartment building in Gaza City among others, hospital staff and the ambulance service said. The strikes come as ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas have hit a standstill after the U.S and Israel recalled their negotiating teams on Thursday, throwing the future of the talks into further uncertainty. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday his government was considering 'alternative options' to ceasefire talks with Hamas. His comments came as a Hamas official said negotiations were expected to resume next week and portrayed the recall of the Israeli and American delegations as a pressure tactic. Egypt and Qatar, which are mediating the talks alongside the United States, said the pause was only temporary and that talks would resume, though they did not say when. The United Nations and experts say that Palestinians in Gaza are at risk of famine, with reports of increasing numbers of people dying from causes related to malnutrition. While Israel's army says it's allowing aid into the enclave with no limit on the number of trucks that can enter, the U.N. says it is hampered by Israeli military restrictions on its movements and incidents of criminal looting. The Zikim crossing shootings come days after at least 79 Palestinians were killed trying to reach aid entering through the same crossing. Israel's military said at the time its soldiers shot at a gathering of thousands of Palestinians who posed a threat, and that it was aware of some casualties. Israel is facing increased international pressure to alleviate the catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza. More then two dozen Western-aligned countries and more than 100 charity and human rights groups have called for an end to the war, harshly criticizing Israel's blockade and a new aid delivery model it has rolled out. The charities and rights groups said even their own staff were struggling to get enough food For the first time in months Israel said it is allowing airdrops, requested by Jordan. A Jordanian official said the airdrops will mainly be food and milk formula. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer wrote in a newspaper article on Saturday that the U.K. was 'working urgently' with Jordan to get British aid into Gaza. Aid group the World Central Kitchen said on Friday that it was resuming limited cooking operations in Deir al-Balah after being forced to halt due to a lack of food supplies. It said it's trying to serve 60,000 meals daily through its field kitchen and partner community kitchens, less than half of what it's cooked over the previous month.


Hamilton Spectator
an hour ago
- Hamilton Spectator
At least 25 people killed by Israeli gunshots and strikes in Gaza, some while seeking aid
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — At least 25 people were killed by Israeli airstrikes and gunshots overnight, according to health officials and the ambulance service on Saturday, as ceasefire talks appear to have stalled and Palestinians in Gaza face famine. The majority of victims were killed by gunfire as they waited for aid trucks close to the Zikim crossing with Israel, said staff at Shifa hospital, where the bodies were brought. Israel's army didn't respond to request for comments about the latest shootings. Those killed in strikes include four people in an apartment building in Gaza City among others, hospital staff and the ambulance service said. The strikes come as ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas have hit a standstill after the U.S and Israel recalled their negotiating teams on Thursday, throwing the future of the talks into further uncertainty. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday his government was considering 'alternative options' to ceasefire talks with Hamas . His comments came as a Hamas official said negotiations were expected to resume next week and portrayed the recall of the Israeli and American delegations as a pressure tactic. Egypt and Qatar, which are mediating the talks alongside the United States, said the pause was only temporary and that talks would resume, though they did not say when. For desperate Palestinians a ceasefire can't come soon enough. The United Nations and experts say that Palestinians in Gaza are at risk of famine, with reports of increasing numbers of people dying from causes related to malnutrition. While Israel's army says it's allowing aid into the enclave with no limit on the number of trucks that can enter, the U.N. says it is hampered by Israeli military restrictions on its movements and incidents of criminal looting. The Zikim crossing shootings come days after at least 79 Palestinians were killed trying to reach aid entering through the same crossing. Israel's military said at the time its soldiers shot at a gathering of thousands of Palestinians who posed a threat, and that it was aware of some casualties. Israel is facing increased international pressure to alleviate the catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza. More then two dozen Western-aligned countries and more than 100 charity and human rights groups have called for an end to the war, harshly criticizing Israel's blockade and a new aid delivery model it has rolled out. The charities and rights groups said even their own staff were struggling to get enough food For the first time in months Israel said it is allowing airdrops, requested by Jordan. A Jordanian official said the airdrops will mainly be food and milk formula. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer wrote in a newspaper article on Saturday that the U.K. was 'working urgently' with Jordan to get British aid into Gaza. Aid group the World Central Kitchen said on Friday that it was resuming limited cooking operations in Deir al-Balah after being forced to halt due to a lack of food supplies. It said it's trying to serve 60,000 meals daily through its field kitchen and partner community kitchens, less than half of what it's cooked over the previous month. ———————— Magdy reported from Cairo, Egypt Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .


NBC News
an hour ago
- NBC News
Why a 'mini Trump' is breaking through in Japan
TOKYO — As President Donald Trump's tariffs add to a sense of uncertainty in Japan, more voters here are embracing an idea inspired by their longtime ally the United States: 'Japanese first.' The nationalist slogan helped the right-wing populist party Sanseito make big gains in Japan's parliamentary elections on Sunday, as it capitalized on economic malaise and concerns about immigration and overtourism. Party leader Sohei Kamiya, who since 2022 had held Sanseito's only seat in the upper house of Japan's parliament, will now be joined by 14 others in the 248-seat chamber. It's a far cry from the party's origin as a fringe anti-vaccination group on YouTube during the Covid-19 pandemic. Though Japan has long had a complex relationship with foreigners and its cultural identity, experts say Sanseito's rise is another indication of the global shift to the right embodied and partly fueled by Trump, with populist figures gaining ground in Europe, Britain, Latin America and elsewhere. Kamiya 'fancies himself a mini-Trump' and 'is one of those who Trump has put wind in his sails,' said Jeff Kingston, a professor of Asian studies and history at Temple University's Japan campus. Speaking at a rally on Saturday at Tokyo's Shiba Park, Kamiya said his calls for greater restrictions on foreign workers and investment were driven not by xenophobia but by 'the workings of globalization.' He criticized mainstream parties' support for boosting immigration in an effort to address the labor shortage facing Japan's aging and shrinking population. 'Japan is still the fourth-largest economy in the world. We have 120 million people. Why do we have to rely on foreign capital?' Kamiya told an enthusiastic crowd. The election results were disastrous for Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who is facing calls to resign now that his conservative Liberal Democratic Party — which has ruled almost uninterrupted since the end of World War II — has lost its majority in both houses of parliament. The Japanese leader had also been under pressure to reach a trade deal with the Trump administration, which said Tuesday that the two sides had agreed to a 15% U.S. tariff on Japanese goods. On Wednesday, Ishiba denied reports that he planned to step down by the end of August. The message from his party's string of election losses is that 'people are unhappy,' Kingston said. 'A lot of people feel that the status quo is biased against their interests and it advantages the elderly over the young, and the young feel sort of resentful that they're having to carry the heavy burden of the growing aging population on their back,' he said. Kamiya, 47, an energetic speaker with social media savvy, is also a strong contrast to leaders such as Ishiba and the Constitutional Democrats' Yoshihiko Noda, both 68, who 'look like yesterday's men' and the faces of the establishment, Kingston said. With voters concerned about stagnating wages, surging prices and bleak employment prospects, 'the change-makers got a lot of protest votes from people who feel disenfranchised,' he said. Sanseito's platform resonated with voters such as Yuta Kato. 'The number of [foreign immigrants] who don't obey rules is increasing. People don't voice it, but I think they feel that,' the 38-year-old hairdresser told Reuters in Tokyo. 'Also, the burden on citizens including taxes is getting bigger and bigger, so life is getting more difficult.' The biggest reason Sanseito did well in the election, he said, 'is that they are speaking on behalf of us.' Kamiya's party was not the only upstart to benefit from voter discontent, with the center-right Democratic Party for the People increasing its number of seats in the upper house from five to 16. Sanseito, whose name means 'Participate in Politics,' originated in 2020 amid the Covid-19 pandemic, attracting conservatives with YouTube videos promoting conspiracy theories about vaccines and pushing back against mask mandates. Its YouTube channel now has almost 480,000 subscribers. The party has also warned about a 'silent invasion' of foreigners in Japan, where the number of foreign residents rose more than 10% last year to a record of almost 3.8 million, according to the Immigration Services Agency. It remains far lower as a proportion of the population than in the U.S. or Europe, however. Critics say such rhetoric has fueled hate speech and growing hostility toward foreigners in Japan, citing a survey last month by Japanese broadcaster NHK and others in which almost two-thirds of respondents agreed that foreigners received 'preferential treatment.' At the Sanseito rally on Saturday, protesters held up signs that said 'No Hate' and 'Racists Go Home.' Kamiya denies that his party is hostile to foreigners in Japan. 'We have no intention of discriminating against foreigners, nor do we have any intention of inciting division,' he said Monday. 'We're just aiming to firmly rebuild the lives of Japanese people who are currently in trouble.' Despite its electoral advances, Sanseito doesn't have enough members in the upper house to make much impact on its own and has only three seats in the more powerful lower house. The challenge, Kingston said, is whether Kamiya can 'take this anger, the malaise, and bring his show nationwide.'