Ari Aster is one of a promising crop of newer directors that got famous through A24. A couple of years after Robert Eggers made his first A24 film with The Witch, the distributor introduced another new director to the world with Aster’s Hereditary in 2018. This movie shocked and intrigued audiences, getting strong reviews and ticket sales. Hereditary made $87.8 million at the worldwide box office, which was impressive given its $10 million budget. It is still among A24’s top 5 highest-grossing films, and one of the more talked-about modern horror films.
Just one year after Hereditary, Aster released Midsommar. Also falling into the horror genre, this movie was also subject to mᴀssive hype and generated discourse, though it did not do quite as well at the box office. Curiously, though, Aster went in a very different direction after Midsommar, helming the trippy, three-hour psychological dark comedy Beau Is Afraid. A box office bomb, this film split critics for the first time in Aster’s short career. Now, the director has created a new film, and this one is already divisive.
Ari Aster Reacts To Eddington’s Split Reviews
Eddington Premiered At Cannes
Aster has now addressed Eddington‘s mixed initial reviews. Eddington is the director’s latest film, chronicling the face-off between a small-town sheriff and a mayor in May 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. It features a star-studded cast including Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Emma Stone, and Austin Butler. After premiering at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this month, Eddington received mixed reviews, including from ScreenRant‘s Graeme Guttmann, who gave it a 6 out of 10. So far, the film has a 67% Tomatometer on Rotten Tomatoes.
Speaking with The New York Times, Aster reflects on the first reactions to Eddington. While he ᴀssured the interviewer that he was “not reading reviews” while visiting France for Cannes, he “figured it would be divisive.” He ᴀssured people that he “knew what [he] was making.” The director went on to speak about the importance of making films that speak to the current issues in the state of the world, politically and otherwise. Check out the full quote from Aster below:
Have you read reviews of the film out of Cannes?
I have not been reading reviews while I’m doing press here, just because I know myself and it’s like quicksand. So I’ve been staying away from whatever people are saying until I leave. I knew what I was making, and we figured it would be divisive. I don’t even know if that’s the case, but I’ve heard something like that.
It’s been a H๏τly discussed film at the parties I’ve gone to here. People have been debating its politics, too.
Oh, really?
I’ve talked to people who felt the film goes harder on the liberal characters than the conservatives.
I just don’t see what preaching to the choir will do. I’m interested in something else, which is the bigger picture. I think most of us are in the same situation: We’re powerless, we’re afraid and we’ve been cut off from the idea of changing the world, the idea of a countervailing force against power.
What kind of reaction to the movie do you hope people will have?
I’ve been wanting to see more of what I’m seeing reflected back to me [in art]. I am really worried and really scared, and I think most people are. I just feel that it’s urgent to talk about it. I know I’ve said it before, but I do think we have to re-engage with each other. Otherwise, there can be no collective agency.
What This Means For Eddington
Eddington Is About A Traumatic Time Period
Aster is spot on when he is referencing the fact that he made a challenging film, as what has split critics the most so far is the movie’s portrayal of the COVID-19 pandemic. While some found it to be accurate and compelling, others felt it to be more frustrating. The height of the pandemic is still only five years in the past, leaving the time period fresh on people’s minds. As such, Eddington is likely to continue to cause further discourse as it releases in theaters on July 18.
Source: NYT
