Joey Magidson
Ron Howard getting down with his darker side is a lot of fun. We don’t see it too often, but he can be a scamp. His newest film Eden has Howard just embracing all of the bleaker sides of humanity, while having a blast as a director, which rubbed off on the audience I saw the movie with. Last time Howard was here, he was talking his documentary Jim Henson Idea Man (found here). Today, he’s back, alongside writer Noah Pink, to talk Eden.
In my review back at the Toronto International Film Festival last year (here), I wrote the following about Howard and Pink:
When you think of Ron Howard the filmmaker, you think of a sturdy popcorn flick, in all likelihood. Rarely, if ever, does he take a bleak view of humanity. Eden, however, is very much on that level. Howard’s survival thriller, which has a darkly funny streak to it, debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival with a bang. Howard may be a cuddly sort of guy, but here, his view of the world is that hell is other people.
Eden starts off a little bit slowly, and it’s clear early on to see where things are going, but there’s a sense of campy fun in seeing things deteriorate. There’s a Lord of the Flies feel to it all, but done in a slightly different way than usual. Some of that is Howard getting down and dirty. The rest is the cast being more than willing to do the same.
Director Ron Howard is clearly having a good time here, taking Noah Pink‘s grimy script and getting down in the mud and the muck. They’re both pretty pleased with themselves, but that leads to more laughs than you might expect. The narrative doesn’t really have any surprises, but that’s not particularly a bug. Howard doesn’t shy away from blood, bodily fluids, or nudity, while Pink is happy to make everyone different shades of terrible, with few exceptions. The ending drags out a touch, but when you see how this true life tale ends, it’s actually pretty notable.
Below, you can see my conversation with Howard and Pink. We didn’t have a lot of time, which is never fun, but we still manage to get some laughs in while talking about the flick. I really honed in on the devilish fun of making this film, since you can just tell that they’re delighting in depicting the darkness of humanity. Howard has a really simple way of breaking down why this flick appealed to him, including the cast he assembled. The chat is short, but there’s plenty here, so be sure to give it a listen. Eden is in theaters on Friday, so definitely check the movie out as well.
Here now is my interview with Eden director Ron Howard and writer Noah Pink. Enjoy:
Eden is in theaters this weekend!
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