It’s impossible to talk about Eddington without talking about COVID-19. At this point in time, most moviegoers are just not interested in reliving the pandemic through the big screen. Luckily, Ari Aster’s fourth feature film isn’t just here to reminisce about masks and hand sanitizer. It’s here to break down and ultimately annihilate the social climate that came with it… and what better way to tackle American social issues than a western?

In Eddington, genre and time period collide in hysterical visual gags. Tough, old school cowboys claim to be too asthmatic to wear face-masks. Town officials have a western standoff over the volume of Katy Perry’s Firework. Policemen attempt to break up a BLM protest with a plastic ring light as a weapon. For the first time since the death of the outlaw, the future of America seems uncertain, and this small New Mexico town isn’t ready for change.

Fans of Aster’s previous work will have plenty to sink into, with his usual calling cards more present than ever. In interviews, he has spoken about how contemporary American issues can be both “catastrophic and ridiculous” all at once, so it’s no surprise that humour and violence are present through every scene. The mocking of far-too-familiar 2020 behaviors is just as brutal and hard to stomach as the gratuitous gore. Each protest sign and bumper sticker are full of jabs requiring a minute attention to detail, right down to well placed spelling errors. Aster’s delirious humour brings home the political scorn through hilarious character decisions and phenomenal delivery from the star-studded cast.

Phoenix gives a layered performance as the town’s conservative, trigger-happy sheriff who can’t get his wife to reciprocate his love. He brings back some of his unyielding anxiety that plagued his character in Aster’s previous film Beau is Afraid, this time in the face of a threat much less immediate but just as heart-pounding. Another notable performance is from Austin Butler, who disappears into the role of a conspiracy podcaster using his influence and ridiculous goatee to manipulate people in a manner almost cult-like. The self-seriousness that he and much of the townspeople exude in their performances are almost mocked by the film’s meticulous direction and editing, breathing a refreshing breath of self-awareness into the film.

In this modern day western, news of violence and outlaws doesn’t travel across the barren frontier by horseback, but by Facebook reels. Geographically, the town of Eddington is geographically removed from the national crises it reacts to: there are no full hospitals low on ventilators, or violent daytime riots in the streets. Instead, the people of Eddington experience these events through polarizing news sources through their screens, whether it be the Ministry of Health, Fox News, or radical Q’Anon grifters. Splintering perspectives on fear, guilt, and morals allow the townspeople to justify escalating their existing petty conflicts into ridiculous allegations and brutality.

Eddington isn’t aiming to give any explicit answers on the “right and wrong” of 2020 politics, instead jabbing a finger at hypocrites using the genuine suffering of others as a means of selfish gain. This may turn off some politically-minded viewers, but perhaps this was the goal, as many viewers won’t like how they see themselves portrayed in Aster’s funhouse mirror of a film. He reminds us that the real conspiracies aren’t the microchips or pedophile cabals being preached about on podcasts. They’re the silent muzzle flashes in the dark. Crimes of pride being carried out by those in positions of power and ultimately pinned on the vulnerable, trampling over homelessness and Indigenous rights in the crossfire.

By nature of its subject matter, Eddington is going to be a fairly controversial watch. That said, this is one of the most biting takes on the state of the world in recent cinematic memory. Viewers with the stomach to experience lockdown again on screen should give it a try, but beware: there won’t be any riding into the sunset here.

Eddington stars Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Luke Grimes, Deirdre O’Connell, Micheal Ward, Austin Butler, and Emma Stone. Catch it in theaters July 18th.