"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. 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."
"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."
Ron Howard opens Eden with the stark proclamation "Fascism is spreading." An impressive cast confronts an overambitious plot that drags in the middle, undermined by an overlong runtime, unlikable characters and shaky accents. The historical resonance between the 1920s and today is present but fails to land amid crafted chaos that causes the story to lose focus. The Ritters' quiet isolation is disrupted by a couple and a young son chasing an island utopia, then complicated by the arrival of Eloise Bosquet de Wagner Wehrhorn, the self-styled Baroness, and her lovers seeking to build a resort. Tensions spiral into betrayal, resource-driven moral collapse, a memorable isolated childbirth scene, and an inevitable, bloody ending.
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