CANNES, France — Ari Aster's COVID-era Western “Eddington,” about a 2020 America quickly losing its mind to conspiracy theories, TikTok and political extremism, premiered to a mixed reception at the Cannes Film Festival.

Set in the pandemic’s early days, the noted horror director’s Covid comedy satirizes the national mood during lockdown. Reactions have been polarizing.

It's no surprise that "Eddington," the provocative new film from writer and director Ari Aster, has brought about a wide range of varied reactions following its Friday night premiere in Cannes, because the director says that the film itself is about the different realities we are living in and how far apart people are even when living right next to each other.

Much of the cinema world has descended on the Cannes Film Festival as the French Riviera extravaganza holds its 78th edition.

Actress Angelina Jolie makes a surprise appearance at the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival in France. US considers pulling troops out of Europe ‘We have to stop what’s going on, it’s insane’: Robert De Niro on battling age,