Eden (2024)
gives us an unhinged Ana de Armas, and for that I am forever grateful. The actress is delectably vicious and simultaneously alluring. It’s easy to hate her, and boy does Eden make us hate her. Directed by Ron Howard from a screenplay by Noah Pink, the film is based on a true story of European survivalists who live secluded on an uninhabited Galápagos island called Floreana. The film is wild, but it’s so much fun when it leans into the pettiness of human behavior, especially as it juxtaposes the reason Dr. Friedrich Ritter (Jude Law) is there.
The film follows Friedrich and his partner Dora Strauch (Vanessa Kirby), who traveled to Floreana in 1929 to live in isolation. Friedrich is busy writing his manifesto, which he hopes will save humanity. Influenced by his work, Heinz Wittmer (Daniel Brühl), his wife Margaret (Sydney Sweeney), and son Harry (Jonathan Tittel) move to the island, much to the dismay of Friedrich and Dora. While the latter doesn’t like the Wittmers, their entire world is shaken when the Baroness Eloise Bosquet de Wagner Wehrhorn (de Armas) joins the island with an ambitious plan to build an exclusive hotel.
Eden Is Dark, Chaotic Fun
Eden would feel like a flight of fancy if the events weren’t based in reality. It begins ominously but quickly devolves into a somewhat campy exploration of human behavior — often petty, dangerous, and competitive. For all that Friedrich opines about saving humanity, the irony here is that he hates people and becomes the very thing he accuses others of. Friedrich is the epitome of pretentiousness, and Eden plays out like an adult version of Lord of the Flies.
The characters try their hardest to be civil, but it doesn’t work. These moments are a strength of the film, as they reveal their true natures.
It’s less dark and more fun (seriously, the comedy is a big reason to watch the movie), exploring the way social class and the idea of survival of the fittest test the characters. Howard and Pink provoke us to take sides, just like the characters do. But the game the characters are playing isn’t one that’s fair, and the chess pieces are always moving. There are lulls in the story, as the initial setup starts to wane, but it paves the way for something more enticing and satisfying.
The film — intentionally or not — is funny as hell. A dinner party features Eloise singing opera while the others look on in annoyance and discomfort; Margaret tells Eloise they had a lovely time at dinner despite it being a disaster. These are characters who we love to hate, and they grow disturbingly more awful as the film goes on. It’s exciting to watch, even in the film’s slower moments. Howard allows them to get as bonkers and untamed as possible. The absurdity of it all is the cherry on top of a delicious cake.
Eden’s Character Dynamics Play To The Film’s Strengths
Even though they don’t all get equal exploration
Eden begins to pick up when de Armas’ Eloise shows up, though it takes a while for the film to settle into a groove. Once it does, the petty drama is at an all-time high and the film can be quite a spectacle. Since there are different accounts of the same real-life story, Eden falls into the trap of oscillating between one group and another. Eloise is actually the uniting factor, and the film would’ve been far less interesting without de Armas.
Kirby and Brühl get the least character development. Howard gets too caught up in the moving pieces to explore them and the themes any deeper, but I can say that I had a blast watching for the most part. When Eden gets ridiculous, it’s at its best. Many of these characters lived affluent lives, so the fact they’re even attempting to live a life that isn’t is fascinating on its own. The characters try their hardest to be civil, but it doesn’t work. These moments are a strength of the film, as they reveal their true natures.
If all Eden set out to do was to show us the drivel of humanity and how quickly they can turn on each other despite Friedrich’s philosophy, then it accomplished its goal. The true story aspect will leave audiences wanting to dig deeper into the two disparate accounts, but even if they don’t, Howard’s Eden is a compulsory watch that does enough to satisfy.
Eden premiered at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. The film is 120 minutes long and not yet rated.