What begins as an investigation into a car accident soon becomes much more for glamorous private eye Honey O’Donahue (Margaret Qualley). As she delves deeper into a mysterious series of deaths in her small town of Bakersfield, California, she uncovers a connection to an enigmatic local church led by Reverend Drew (Chris Evans). Enlisting the help of a local cop (Aubrey Plaza) and a homicide detective (Charlie Day), she must stay alive – as well as one step ahead of the culprits – in order to solve the crimes and save the day.

This darkly comedic whodunit hails from the mind of Ethan Coen, collaborating with co-writer and real-life partner Tricia Cooke on this follow-up to last year’s Drive Away Dolls and the second instalment in their self-proclaimed “lesbian B-movie trilogy.” With its uniquely Coen blend of eccentric characters and unpredictable twists, Honey Don’t! is a thrilling, offbeat ride that never takes itself too seriously.

After making a splash with acclaimed horror hits like Hereditary and Midsommar, American writer-director Ari Aster turns his unique talents to examine the equally horrifying COVID-19 pandemic as only he can.

Set during the early days of the pandemic in May 2020, the film unfolds in the small, eponymous town of Eddington, New Mexico. There, Mayor Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal) and Sheriff Joe Cross (Joaquin Phoenix) find themselves at loggerheads over the issue of personal liberty, complicating existing tensions between the two men. The entire town – including the sheriff’s long-suffering wife (Emma Stone) and a charismatic cult leader (Austin Butler) – soon find themselves caught in the crossfire.

Eddington is a provocative, genre-bending neo-western black comedy which examines a laundry list of still-timely powder keg issues such as social anxiety, conspiracy theories, racial privilege and gun ownership. Darkly funny and bitingly satirical, the film has – not unexpectedly – divided audiences. Aster wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.