Sydney Sweeney is known for starring in some hard-hitting, R-rated dramas that hold very little back, but her latest thriller, Eden, is one of her darkest and most gruesome works, according to the latest round of reviews. Sweeney stars alongside an all-star cast, which includes Daniel Brühl, Ana de Armas, Vanessa Kirby, and Jude Law, with Ron Howard directing. Eden held its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival last September. But, with its theatrical release date of August 22 fast approaching, more and more reviews are flooding the internet. So, has Ron Howard created a new cinematic Eden, or is the film stuck in the Land of Nod?
The latest reviews for Eden are moderately positive, with many critics praising Sydney Sweeney and Ana de Armas’ film-stealing performances. Ross McIndoe of Slant Magazine recently dropped their review for Eden. They scored the movie a middling 2/4, as they focused on the film’s unpredictability, writing, “This is a film where you never quite know if the next scene is going to bring you a knife fight, a literary debate, or a childbirth inside a cave surrounded by wild dogs.”
‘Eden’ Opens in Theaters This Weekend
Based on the reviews, Eden might not be Ron Howard’s best film. But with a filmography that includes Apollo 13, Rush, The Da Vinci Code, A Beautiful Mind, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and Willow, he’s allowed to have a dud here and there.
Although Eden isn’t all bad. The film holds a 60% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, so the critics have found more than enough to enjoy about the movie. But, looking at the reviews, it’s not the film’s rushed plot. “Howard seems more concerned with the conflict than with the ideas behind it, and Eden feels rather hollow as a result,” wrote Brian Eggert of Deep Focus Review, summing it up best. Although if you dare to sit through Eden‘s survivalist drama, you’d better have an iron stomach, as Monita Roy Mohan of Women Write About Comics wrote:
“Decent performances and an interesting conceit make Eden a film that piques one’s interest. But only watch it if you can stomach survivalist cinema. It’s not an easy watch, but not as gruesome as one would expect.”
Eden
- Release Date
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August 22, 2025
- Runtime
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120 minutes
- Writers
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Noah Pink
- Producers
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Brian Grazer, Karen Lunder, Patrick Newall, Stuart Ford
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