Eddington (Special Edition) [Blu-Ray]

Director: Ari Aster

Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Luke Grimes

Release Date: October 7, 2025

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Film Rating: 9/10
Disc Rating: 7.5/10

Synopsis:

In May of 2020, a standoff between a small-town sheriff (Joaquin Phoenix) and mayor (Pedro Pascal) sparks a powder keg as neighbor is pitted against neighbor in Eddington, New Mexico.

‘Eddington’ follows the hectic events surrounding the small town of Eddington in New Mexico in May of 2020 as the pandemic begins to spread massively while a personal feud between the local Sheriff and Mayor expands into new dangerous territory once the Sheriff decides to start his own mayoral campaign after becoming fed up. As tensions rise and things become more uncertain, it soon leads to neighbor being pitted against neighbor and violence escalating as the chaos and uncertainty build to a boiling point that will change the community forever.

Written and directed by Ari Aster (Hereditary, Beau is Afraid) who does a great job at the helm of ‘Eddington’ guiding along the contemporary western with care, tension and a gritty edge sprinkled with dark humor. The film’s notable cast includes Joaquin Phoenix (Joker), Pedro Pascal (Gladiator II), Luke Grimes (TV’s Yellowstone), Deirdre O’Connell (TV’s The Penguin), Micheal Ward (The Book of Clarence), Amélie Hoeferle (Night Swim), Clifton Collins Jr. (Nightmare Alley), William Belleau (Killers of the Flower Moon), Austin Butler (Elvis) and Emma Stone (Poor Things), with the majority offering capable and solid performances in each of their respective roles.

‘Eddington’ delivers an intriguing, brutally realistic and at times darkly comedic look at a small community that delves into chaos amid a mayoral election, the growing pandemic and conflict regarding the abuse of power and police brutality that builds until reaching a boiling point of violence and radically differing opinions. A smartly crafted contemporary western that’s populated with unique characters and a growing cloud of doubt and uncertainty that sends many to concerning and even unforgivable places of which the repercussions will be inescapable, all layered by some clever and notably dark humor that itself is often as hilarious as it is believable.

Filmmaker Ari Aster dives entirely and unapologetically into numerous conflicts and different opinions within a community and the escalation and dire conflict that arise as a result. While it’s possible that it may be somewhat too soon for many to watch this without their own opinions and thoughts affecting the experience, it does a marvelous job of exploring both sides of each conflict. At the same time it never shies away from the carnage and misery that often come from the actions of various individuals who become fed up with the way things are going and some who are all too willing to take matters into their own hands, regardless of what may be right or wrong. The uneasy tension and chaos is only enhanced by the careful guidance of Aster and the powerhouse cast at his disposal which repeatedly help this powerful tale to become something memorable that will stay with you well after the credits roll.

Overall, ‘Eddington’ is a powerful and tremendously crafted film that pushes things to some unexpected levels, delivering a terrifyingly believable tale of a small town’s path into violence and chaos, packed with some shocking turns and a wicked sense of humor that’s as eerily honest at times as it is hilarious. The tremendous visuals from the sprawling and beautiful filming locations along with the immense care put into nearly every detail all help it to become quite special. It’s fair to say that ‘Eddington’ won’t be a film for everyone but should be worth checking out for those that are fans of filmmaker Ari Aster’s unique filmography, or of the outstanding cast led by Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal. If you’re at all intrigued by this one it should be worth your time and the price of a rental to give a whirl at the very least.

VIDEO:

The Blu-ray release of ‘Eddington’ features a full 1080p High Definition presentation with the film’s original 1.85:1 Aspect Ratio. The video presentation looks terrific as a whole and it provides a richly detailed, clean and sharp presentation from start to finish that never suffers from any unexpected issues to be found throughout. Detail is wonderful on character faces and attire, along with the expansive views of the town and the various interior settings. Colors are full bodied and clean, while black levels and shadowing are satisfyingly deep, rich and problem free. Overall, this is a great high definition presentation that delivers nicely at every turn and should satisfy newcomers as well as fans.

AUDIO:

The Blu-ray release features a Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 channel compatible) soundtrack. Please note that this review pertains solely to the Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio presentation. This multichannel soundtrack nicely complements the onscreen tension and unease and it delivers a clean, crisp and at times very aggressive audio presentation throughout. It repeatedly utilizes all seven available channels in order to send music, bullets, debris, other action, vehicle and nature effects, plus crowd chatter and more moving throughout the various speakers when appropriate and never allowing any dialogue or other audio elements to become distorted or negatively impacted in the process. Overall, this is a fantastic Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 compatible) soundtrack that more than delivers in every way tasked of it and shouldn’t disappoint whatsoever.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The Blu-ray release of ‘Eddington’ features the behind the scenes Featurette ‘Made in Eddington’ (running approximately 33 minutes in length) which features interviews/comments with the cast and crew, plus behind the scenes footage and more. 6 Collectible Souvenir Postcards are also included inside the DigiPak packaging.

*Please note that the above images are taken from the Blu-Ray and resized. They will additionally suffer quality loss as a result of .jpg compression. Larger versions of each image can be viewed by clicking on the image. All images and content included on this Blu-Ray release are the property of their respective owners.

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Film Rating: 9/10
Disc Rating: 7.5/10

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‘Eddington’ is Now Available to Own on Special Edition 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray & on Digital from A24