Overview

• The film’s July 18 U.S. release has drawn polarized responses from critics and audiences over its raw portrayal of ideological clashes during COVID-19
• Ari Aster frames a hyperscale data center at the film’s start and end to symbolize Big Tech’s processing of personal trauma into consumable data
• Cinematographer Darius Khondji employed intensely bright exteriors and a contemporary Western palette to highlight themes of isolation and fragmentation
• Costume designer Anna Terrazas mapped character arcs through wardrobe, using shifts from covered clothing to revealing pieces to signal evolving agency
• Analysts focus on the film’s explosive third act and its blend of Western tropes with social media satire to critique America’s fractured reality