Hello friends!
I hadn't planned to share my views and opinions on this movie, which I watched last Saturday night, quietly, but it surprised me and caught my attention quite a bit, so I didn't want to stop recommending it to you, especially to those who like adventures and also human psychology and more...
I watched it on Amazon Prime Video, and in fact, it was a new addition and was already in the top 10, at least in my country. What TV show am I talking about? This movie is called Eden. It does indeed sound like some kind of utopia or paradise where things happen, but it's actually more real than it seems, and I don't want to go into too much detail about that here for now. Yes, it all centers on one place—yes, it's a natural island—and there are people who survive there and some events happen. But we'll see how and who, because this psychological thriller is interesting and surprising for several reasons. Hope you like it!
Well, let's tell something about this movie. Here my review:
What is this about?
As I said, this film is about an island, specifically one of the Galapagos Islands, so it's not a utopia but a real place, with real people from a bygone era. The film begins in 1929, and the historical context is relevant to understanding the reasons why a German doctor, Ritter, and his partner, Dore, live there, isolated from the world. It's also why we see some other characters who come there later, possibly following a dream, a utopia, or simply to start a better life.
But the place is wild, there's little water, few resources, wild dogs, and it seems difficult to farm. Even so, the doctor and the girl aren't happy when neighbors arrive, attracted by what the newspapers report about them. Because the doctor, in addition to writing a book, which he claims is to save humanity from itself, also sends correspondence to the media via some ships that pass by the island from time to time.
And a young family arrives with a sick child who, through time in contact with nature, sunshine, and fresh air, will regain his health. But although they maintain certain appearances, they are not welcome, so they are assigned a complex section of land on the upper slopes, thinking that over time they would tire and leave. But the family is determined to prosper despite the difficulties, and the husband, somewhat traumatized by having fought in the First World War, works very hard to build a house and a garden that will grow, to the disbelief and bewilderment of his older neighbors, who are barely able to grow a few vegetables and keep their donkey, whom Dore adores. They also end up having a child on the island despite many difficulties, especially at the last minute. But we must also highlight the great intelligence and composure of Margret, and I don't want to give anything away here because it's a spoiler...
Everything gets complicated when the Baroness arrives, a young woman with the appearance of a capricious rich woman accompanied by bodyguards and an engineer. She plans to build an exclusive hotel on the island, but everything gets even more complicated. The plans don't go as expected. While she doesn't care about anything and dedicates herself to sex and insulting the other neighbors, none of the dug wells produce water. The engineer sees that this plan isn't so feasible. She claims to have the deed to the land, but time goes by, they run out of canned food, and they still haven't made any progress. So she begins to plot. We discover more about her character, and in the end, between all the characters, everything gets even more complicated, and among all the characters.
The characters
The cast is very good, and many will surely have seen the film for that reason. Because it features important and well-known stars: Jude Law as the doctor, Ana de Armas as the Baroness, and an extraordinary Sidney Sweeney as Margret. In my opinion she is the star of this thriller.
Everyone plays a great role, including Daniel Brühl as the husband and Vanessa Kirby as Dore.
But it's true that, since the Baroness's role is somewhat unpleasant, we end up hating this manipulative character, and we grow closer and closer to the family, and Margret of course, and then we are surprised by the ending.
Anything else to comment?
There's a fundamental fact that shouldn't be overlooked. I mention it because it appears in the platform's synopsis, and some details appear at the beginning of the film, as well as at the end. That is, the film is based on true events, and at first I didn't notice much. I didn't give it much importance, believing it was mainly to explain the historical context the characters were in. But there's much more to it, which you'll understand when the film is over.
I'm not going to spoil the ending, of course. I'm just going to tell you that when it's over, wait until it's over, because before the credits, it tells you how each of the characters ended up later, and there are also real black and white images! Pay attention to what he says, especially about Dore and Margret!
"Inspired by the accounts of those who survived".
I have been telling so much, so better to watch this interesting movie by yourselves. Take a look and comment!
More information about the movie and the shared images here: Original title: Eden (2024) - IMDB: Eden
