What if nine Europeans, disillusioned by mass poverty and social unrest in a 1920s post-Great War Germany, attempt to start anew on a Galápagos island.
Ron Howard’s “Eden” opens with a bold statement: “Fascism is spreading.”
It’ll surely carry weight in modern society, but the phrase is referencing events from nearly a century ago. Based on a true story, “Eden” retraces what happened when a group of Europeans attempted to start anew on the remote island of Floreana, only to encounter the earthly failings they hoped to escape: chaos, blackmail, betrayal and even murder.
Howard assembles an impressive cast, though it isn’t always enough to make up for the overambitious plot of a film that drags in the middle.
1920s Germany, haunted after accepting blame for World War I, was on the brink of demise, as mass poverty and broad social unrest laid ground for the extremism that birthed the Nazi party.
“Eden” shows us none of that, instead dropping us on a small island of the Galápagos, where Dr. Friedrich Ritter (Jude Law) and his loyal partner, Dore Strauch Ritter (Vanessa Kirby) found solace after fleeing their native country. The idealist doctor is inspired by a newfound purpose of penning radical philosophy that will “save humanity from itself.”
Yet the historical resonance, which could have provided pointed commentary on the parallels between today and the 1920s, falls flat amid the film’s overlong runtime, unlikable characters and shaky accents that most actors stumble in and out of. In the midst of the film’s crafted chaos, the story inevitably loses focus. Still, “Eden” made room for some memorable performances.
More adventurists eventually arrive on the island, and just like that, human interaction starts to breed madness.
The doctor’s philosophical work has spread through letters and newspapers across Europe, attracting settlers like Heinz Wittmer, a veteran of the Great War played by Daniel Brühl, and his much younger second wife Margaret, played by Sydney Sweeney.
The Ritters’ quiet isolation is disrupted by the couple, who arrive with Wittmer’s young son, chasing the promise of an island utopia to ease their deep disillusionment with everyday reality. The tension between the two groups further exacerbates when Eloise Bosquet de Wagner Wehrhorn (Ana de Armas), who calls herself the Baroness, arrives with her two lovers, determined to build a resort on the island.
What results is a cat-and-mouse game between the three groups, ripe with betrayal, distrust and tension. The battle for resources exposes just how much of their morality these people are willing to give up for survival, at least attempting to — but never fully succeeding — in addressing the question: When do people bend to human instinct?
The film lacks depth in exploring questions of morality and human nature while depicting Ritter’s lofty goals to save humanity. His philosophy spirals into madness throughout the film, reduced to brief, sometimes painful and surface level sound bites that eventually devolve into incoherent ramblings.
The movie is at its most compelling when its three female actors are on the screen. Different motivations bring them to the island, each of which ultimately centers on the same blind faith in the idea of the masculine leader. They all end up vastly disappointed.
Dore is consumed by an unwavering devotion for Ritter, a man who never lives up to the image she’s crafted in her mind. Margaret, having married an older man expecting guidance, is instead forced to build her family’s future from the ground up, only to fight tooth and nail to preserve it after her husband nearly destroys them. And the Baroness, who confidently declares herself “the embodiment of perfection,” oozing with seduction, ultimately crumbles at the rejection of a man.
Arguably, Sweeney — who is almost unrecognizable as the timid and brunette Margaret — steals the show. She easily delivers the most impactful scene of the movie, as she was forced to give birth to a baby boy alone in the middle of the desolate island.
It’s not hard to guess who won’t makes it off the island, either by choice or by force. It is a true story after all. The bloody ending feels unavoidable from the beginning, almost as predictable as human nature itself. But maybe that was the point all along.
“Eden,” a Vertical release in theaters Friday, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association for “some strong violence, sexual content, graphic nudity and language.” Running time: 129 minutes. Two and half stars out of four.
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