In “Eddington”, Joaquin Phoenix, sheriff of an America on the edge of the rupture

Joaquin Phoenix is ​​struggling to bring order to an America on the verge of rupture in “Eddington”, neo-western in the luxury cast, which is a satirical mirror of today’s United States.

In theaters Wednesday in France. In addition, Friday in the United States, the film is the work of one of the darlings of independent American cinema, Ari Aster, known for his gender films, from “heredity” to “Midsommar”.

After “Beau is Afraid”. Similarly, he finds Joaquin Phoenix (“Joker”) and in fact the Sheriff of Eddington, a town of New Mexico by the boiling, in the middle of Covid.

Faced with this rective conservative sheriff at the port of the mask in the name of freedom. For example, common sense, Pedro Pascal (“The Last of Us”, “The Fantastic Four”) plays a mayor trying to enforce health standards. For example, This progressive dreams of developing the “eddington”, joaquin phoenix, sheriff america city by attracting a data center.

Before the shooting. Therefore, Ari Aster, who grew up at New Mexico, embarked Joaquin Phoenix in a tour of this state from the South.

“We met a few sheriffs,” said the actor in Cannes, from where the film left empty -handed. One of them particularly inspired them: “There was something (interesting) in his nature. someone from a politically conservative but who had a very assertive moral sense. Someone good, with whom we feel safe”.

But, in the film, when the sheriff decides to run for the mayor’s chair, the war is declared.

Theories of conspiracy. violence, disinformation, isolation, racism in the wake of the death of George Floyd, African-American killed by a police officer: at the beginning of the COVID, “this is the moment when the fever was the strongest. This is where I started to write,” ARI ASTER explained to AFP during a meeting with journalists.

– “real. “eddington”, joaquin phoenix, sheriff america not” –

“This film talks about what is happening when people no longer agree on what is real or not. This is something that starts to reach all everywhere but more particularly in the United States that I can. talk about because I live there.” “The last link with the old system broke during the covid (…) It was the beginning of something enormous”.

This fourth film was imagined before Donald Trump’s return to power. Ari Aster hoped to finish it for an outing during the electoral period but the months of strike that. paralyzed Hollywood in 2023 made him revise his plans.

The result is a 02h27, robotic, satirical and ultraviolet table, of an America by the rupture. A western where mobile phones and social networks have replaced the colts.

Ari Aster is hardly used to saving his characters and. in “Eddington”, everyone takes it for their rank, followers of the theories of “eddington”, joaquin phoenix, sheriff america the conspiracy and white supremacists but also anti-racist militants of the “Black Lives Matter” and progressive movement, also ridiculous.

To interpret this gallery of characters, alongside Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal, the director called on stars. Among them. Emma Stone plays the sheriff’s wife, a former victim of sexual violence that fell under the spell of a conspiracy guru, played by Austin Butler (“Elvis”).

FBE/May/SLA