Like most people out there, I was less than impressed by Anderson's latest, despite being a fan of Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums; but when critics who are smarter than the average bear see something in this half-baked ratatouille of a film, I'm forced to reconsider, even if it means coming up with the same result. (And no, ratatouille isn't baked; sue me.)
One thing to note is that, despite some claims to the contrary, this really isn't the same Wes Anderson. Sure, there are the usual Andersonisms: the childlike, closed-off, invented world, the deadpan acting style, the 60s and 70s music. But Anderson is expanding his style; the closed-off world now encompasses an ocean, his camera seems to move more, and he dips his foot into action conventions for the first time, with interesting and odd results. (This culminates in one of the most visually audacious moments in Anderson's oov-rah; I won't spoil it here, but it includes the line (paraphrased) "this is probably going to hurt".)
Unfortunately, the deadpan acting, while appropriate for a family of neurotics, is ill-fitting for a family of eccentric diver/filmmakers. It's supposed to represent their professionalism, their imperturbability, but it becomes stifling. Usually, there's one character that's allowed to break through this emotional wall (Mason Gamble in Rushmore, Gene Hackman in Tenenbaums), but no one's allowed here. (Unless you're counting Cate Blanchett, and I'm afraid I'm not.) As a result, the movie is always at arm's length, and Bill Murray just doesn't have the chops to find a way to let us in.
So what are über-cinephiles seeing here? Mike D'Angelo suggests elsewhere on the World Wide Web that the relationship between Murray and Owen Wilson (playing Ned, who may or may not be Zissou's son) is a red herring. I can go along with that; to me, it looks like Zissou is looking for someone to love, someone to complete him, like his now-dead friend Esteban (note the name) and former love Jacqueline, and he proceeds to "audition" others for the part, before realizing that his team is all that he needs. Yet, a lot of the film's meat is the Zissou/Ned relationship, and, as David Edelstein noted (I think), deadpan versus deadpan doesn't create any sparks. And thus, the half-bakedness, as the film violently shifts from wonderful bits (of production design, of wit, of virtuosity) to dramatic scenes of dead air and back again.
But all Wes Anderson movies deserve a second viewing -- most of their pleasures are derived from multiple viewings, once the plot is a given -- and this is no exception.
Where we saw it: film | We deign to rate it: outta 100One of the most clever movies I have seen in a long time. Not since Bottlerocket and Rushmore have I been so entertained.
Posted by: Cyndee at July 1, 2005 03:17 PM