The episode highlights the personal history between the sheriff and the mayor, adding layers of mistrust and emotional complexity, particularly with Emma Stone’s heartbreaking portrayal of Louise, who finds herself ensnared in an online cult. Chris and his co-host discuss Justin Butler's chilling performance as the cult leader, Vernon Jefferson Peak, and how the film effectively illustrates the alarming rise in online conspiracy engagement during lockdowns, reflecting real-world statistics on belief in conspiracy theories.
Listeners will appreciate how *Eddington* captures the gradual descent into madness, mirroring the slow radicalization observed during the pandemic. The subplot involving an AI center symbolizes the deeper societal divisions, showcasing the clash between technological solutions and traditional values. Chris emphasizes the film's power as a historical document, revealing unsettling truths about the past and present, and prompting listeners to consider the ongoing impact of fear and isolation on communities.
With a solid rating of 7.5 out of 10, *Eddington* serves as a chilling reminder of the collective delusions that can arise in times of crisis, urging viewers to reflect on the societal patterns that continue to unfold. Join Chris and his co-host as they dissect this gripping film that resonates with the complexities of contemporary life.
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00:00:04 --> 00:00:06 Chris: Remember when everyone kept saying the world
00:00:06 --> 00:00:09 has gone crazy during COVID Well,
00:00:09 --> 00:00:10 this new film, Eddington, takes that
00:00:10 --> 00:00:13 collective madness and turns it into
00:00:13 --> 00:00:14 something truly haunting about modern
00:00:14 --> 00:00:15 America.
00:00:16 --> 00:00:18 Jessica: That's fascinating how they chose this tiny
00:00:18 --> 00:00:20 New Mexico border town to tell such a huge
00:00:20 --> 00:00:23 story about that period. The M setting
00:00:23 --> 00:00:25 almost feels like a pressure cooker for
00:00:25 --> 00:00:26 everything that was happening nationally.
00:00:28 --> 00:00:30 Chris: You know what's really striking about it? The
00:00:30 --> 00:00:31 way Joaquin Phoenix portrays this
00:00:31 --> 00:00:34 transformation of Sheriff Joe Cross. He
00:00:34 --> 00:00:36 starts as this reasonable skeptic,
00:00:36 --> 00:00:38 questioning mask mandates in a town with
00:00:38 --> 00:00:41 zero Covid cases. But then,
00:00:41 --> 00:00:43 well, things get much darker.
00:00:44 --> 00:00:46 Jessica: The tension between him and Pedro Pascal's
00:00:46 --> 00:00:49 character as the progressive mayor is so well
00:00:49 --> 00:00:51 crafted. It's like watching two different
00:00:51 --> 00:00:53 versions of America colliding in real time.
00:00:54 --> 00:00:57 Chris: And what makes it even more complex is how
00:00:57 --> 00:00:59 they weave in this personal history between
00:00:59 --> 00:01:01 them. The whole backstory about the mayor
00:01:02 --> 00:01:04 supposedly taking advantage of the sheriff's
00:01:04 --> 00:01:06 wife when she was younger. It adds this whole
00:01:06 --> 00:01:09 other layer of mistrust that goes way beyond
00:01:09 --> 00:01:10 just politics.
00:01:11 --> 00:01:13 Jessica: Speaking of his wife, Emma Stone's portrayal
00:01:13 --> 00:01:15 of Louise is absolutely heartbreaking. The
00:01:15 --> 00:01:17 way she gets pulled into that online cult
00:01:17 --> 00:01:19 world feels so relevant to what we saw
00:01:19 --> 00:01:21 happening during lockdown.
00:01:22 --> 00:01:24 Chris: Oh, man. Let's talk about Austin Butler as
00:01:24 --> 00:01:27 that cult leader. Vernon Jefferson Peak. The
00:01:27 --> 00:01:29 statistics about online conspiracy group
00:01:29 --> 00:01:32 membership during COVID are pretty shocking.
00:01:32 --> 00:01:35 Some studies showed a 300% increase in
00:01:35 --> 00:01:36 engagement with these kinds of communities
00:01:36 --> 00:01:37 during lockdown.
00:01:38 --> 00:01:41 Jessica: Hmm. What really got me was how the
00:01:41 --> 00:01:43 film shows the way social media became this
00:01:43 --> 00:01:45 amplifier for collective paranoia.
00:01:46 --> 00:01:49 Like how Deidre o' Connell's character, Dawn,
00:01:49 --> 00:01:51 represents that whole demographic of isolated
00:01:51 --> 00:01:54 older Americans who fel down these online
00:01:54 --> 00:01:55 rabbit holes.
00:01:55 --> 00:01:58 Chris: You know what's interesting? Research showed
00:01:58 --> 00:02:00 that during the peak of the pandemic, about
00:02:00 --> 00:02:03 40% of Americans believed at least one
00:02:03 --> 00:02:06 major conspiracy theory. The film really
00:02:06 --> 00:02:09 captures how, uh, isolation and fear
00:02:09 --> 00:02:11 created this perfect storm where, uh, even
00:02:11 --> 00:02:13 rational people started believing
00:02:13 --> 00:02:15 increasingly irrational things.
00:02:16 --> 00:02:19 Jessica: Well, how do you think Ari Aster manages to
00:02:19 --> 00:02:21 make this slow descent into madness feel so
00:02:21 --> 00:02:22 authentic?
00:02:23 --> 00:02:25 Chris: I think it's because he takes his time
00:02:25 --> 00:02:27 building the tension. Like studies showed
00:02:27 --> 00:02:30 that radicalization during COVID wasn't
00:02:30 --> 00:02:33 instant. It typically took about six to eight
00:02:33 --> 00:02:35 weeks of increased online engagement before
00:02:35 --> 00:02:38 people started showing significant changes in
00:02:38 --> 00:02:41 their beliefs. The film mirrors that
00:02:41 --> 00:02:42 gradual process.
00:02:42 --> 00:02:45 Jessica: The way it shows Louise's transformation is
00:02:45 --> 00:02:47 particularly chilling. It's like watching
00:02:47 --> 00:02:49 someone fall down that rabbit hole in real
00:02:49 --> 00:02:49 time.
00:02:50 --> 00:02:53 Chris: And what's really clever is how the film uses
00:02:53 --> 00:02:56 the AI center subplot as this symbol
00:02:56 --> 00:02:58 of the deeper divisions in American society.
00:02:58 --> 00:03:00 You've got the mayor pushing for this
00:03:00 --> 00:03:03 technological future while the sheriff is
00:03:03 --> 00:03:04 trying to preserve this traditional way of
00:03:04 --> 00:03:07 life. It's like watching the rural urban
00:03:07 --> 00:03:09 divide play out in microcosm.
00:03:09 --> 00:03:11 Jessica: That's such a good point about the AI center.
00:03:12 --> 00:03:14 It's almost like the mayor is trying to use
00:03:14 --> 00:03:16 technology to solve what are essentially
00:03:16 --> 00:03:17 human problems.
00:03:18 --> 00:03:20 Chris: Well, what makes the film so powerful as a
00:03:20 --> 00:03:23 historical document is how it captures these
00:03:23 --> 00:03:25 specific details that almost feel
00:03:25 --> 00:03:28 unbelievable now. Like those protests
00:03:28 --> 00:03:30 where young white people were literally
00:03:30 --> 00:03:32 denouncing their own skin color. It's showing
00:03:32 --> 00:03:34 us real things that happened, but through
00:03:34 --> 00:03:36 this slightly heightened lens.
00:03:36 --> 00:03:38 Jessica: The suggestion that America might be even
00:03:38 --> 00:03:41 more extreme now than it was in 2020 is
00:03:41 --> 00:03:43 pretty provocative. Like I Are we still
00:03:43 --> 00:03:45 living in that same kind of collective
00:03:45 --> 00:03:46 delusion?
00:03:47 --> 00:03:49 Chris: You know, some sociologists have suggested
00:03:49 --> 00:03:52 that periods of mass hysteria typically last
00:03:52 --> 00:03:54 about two to three years. But what's
00:03:54 --> 00:03:56 different about our current situation is how
00:03:56 --> 00:03:59 social media keeps these cycles of paranoia
00:03:59 --> 00:04:02 and conspiracy going. The film really
00:04:02 --> 00:04:04 captures that feeling of being trapped in
00:04:04 --> 00:04:06 this perpetual crisis mode.
00:04:06 --> 00:04:08 Jessica: So what do you think the film is ultimately
00:04:08 --> 00:04:10 saying about where we're headed as a society?
00:04:12 --> 00:04:13 Chris: I think it's suggesting that these divisions
00:04:13 --> 00:04:16 and paranoia aren't just symptoms of the
00:04:16 --> 00:04:19 pandemic. They're deeper issues that Covid
00:04:19 --> 00:04:21 just brought to the surface. The fact that
00:04:21 --> 00:04:23 we're still grappling with many of these same
00:04:23 --> 00:04:26 conflicts 5 years later kind of proves the
00:04:26 --> 00:04:27 film's point.
00:04:27 --> 00:04:29 Jessica: M that's what makes it such powerful
00:04:29 --> 00:04:31 storytelling. It's using this specific moment
00:04:31 --> 00:04:33 in time to tell us something universal about
00:04:33 --> 00:04:35 how fear and isolation can transform
00:04:35 --> 00:04:36 communities.
00:04:37 --> 00:04:39 Chris: And maybe that's the most unsettling thing
00:04:39 --> 00:04:41 about Eddington. It's not just showing us who
00:04:41 --> 00:04:43 we were during COVID but who we might still
00:04:43 --> 00:04:46 be becoming. The real horror isn't in
00:04:46 --> 00:04:49 the past. It's in recognizing these patterns
00:04:49 --> 00:04:51 are still playing out around us. We're giving
00:04:51 --> 00:04:54 Eddington a score of seven and a half out of
00:04:54 --> 00:04:54 ten.
00:04:54 --> 00:04:57 Jessica: You've been listening to movies first
00:04:57 --> 00:04:59 available at Apple Podcasts, Spotify,
00:05:00 --> 00:05:02 iHeartRadio or your favourite podcast
00:05:02 --> 00:05:04 player. You can also stream on
00:05:04 --> 00:05:06 demand@bytes.com this.
00:05:06 --> 00:05:09 Chris: Has been another quality podcast product from
00:05:09 --> 00:05:09 science.
00:05:10 --> 00:05:12 Jessica: Com. Um.