Wes Anderson discussion - Blu-ray Forum

P@t_Mtl · 08-10-2010, 11:04 AM

Good morning everyone,

I have a question concerning Wes Anderson.

Let me start by saying I am not a fan of his movies, not making a comment or critic on it however. I first saw Rushmore back in 1998 and then saw The Royal Tenenbaums and I sort of seen that really his style is just not for me. So I never really got around to check his other movies. My cable provider as the IFC channel (which is a great channel by the way) and I've notice on many of his movies that the rating is like a 4 or a 5 (you know the usual movie rating you might see in TV Guide for example). Most of the time 4 is average and 5 is below average. Most of the movies in Criterion would be usually at 3 and in most cases 2 or 1 if they were to show up on TV at all. So what is the major appeal for Wes Anderson? As I mention his style is just not for me and looking at ratings of his movies it seem like they are average at best yet so many people seem to rave about him. So I am wondering what is it that you like about his movies? The style, the humor.... It's just a curiosity thing on my part.

Grubert · 08-10-2010, 11:54 AM

I largely agree with you. I've only seen two Wes Anderson movies: The Royal Tenenbaums (which I liked) and The Life Aquatic (which I didn't).

His movies belong clearly in the "quirky indie" subgenre, with eccentric, dysfunctional characters and dialogue that always feels written. The reason why I connected with Tenenbaums is because there is some life inside, whereas Life Aquatic just felt like an empty exercise.

doctorsteve · 08-10-2010, 12:28 PM

It is definitely an acquired taste. I saw bits of Rushmore - thought it was dumb. You're totally right that it feels scripted... if only it were a movie

But!!! After a second viewing, I fell in love with it.

Next I saw Tennenbaums and Bottle Rocket (not sure which order) Loved 'em both. Yes, the quirky characters seem unreal - these people just couldn't exist outside of Hollywood.

Next was The Life Aquatic. I still hate this one - I'll tell you why later. Seen it twice - it does nothing for me.

Darjeeling Limited - having become accustomed to the character interplay that seems to be Anderson's hallmark, Darjeeling is right up my alley. And now - I shall explain why:

Anderson's comedic sense seems to come from the dialogue being beyond the character's capabilities. Incredibly flawed people delivering minimalistic, very dry, nearly stoic - emotional observations. It's through those emotionally based statements that the real stories are delivered to the viewer.

Anderson's creative twist is the opposite of what happens in typical movies - where ordinary, 'normal' people are trying to give us extraordinary life lessons. We truly have to suspend our disbelief, and be taken along for the ride and believe that two people can find true love or happiness amongst all the chaos and hard times life has to deliver. A hard task - and why so many movies fail... they just aren't believable.

Anderson takes people we KNOW just don't exist, dialogue that just doesn't happen - and tries to convince us to 'just play along' with a nod and a wink. When he DOES get us to accept these bizarre characters the way they are, he can get down to the emotional interplay that he wants to address. It's like shadow puppets - or Kabuki theatre for that matter... He wants you to get past what these people look like, and get to the feelings and emotion behind it all.

I believe several of his movies are good at this (Tennenbaums being the best example, I believe), and I believe The Life Aquatic completely missed the mark at this, for me. Aquatic was SO esoteric that it may as well have been in French and filmed in B&W in a single shot... like some Calvin Klein parfum commercial.

Love him or hate him, he has an interesting approach to story telling that, seems to me, is more about emotional stories rather than beginning-middle-end stories.

Liked Darjeeling, and am looking forward to the Criterion release. Try Bottle Rocket if you haven't yet...

Cheers,

Doc

masoud90 · 08-10-2010, 05:39 PM

Very interesting because I just added all of his I haven't seen to my netflix queue. I have seen THE DARJEELING LIMITED, FANTASTIC MR. FOX, and THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS. I loved the latter two and really liked the first one. I think I like his dry comedy style and am interested in seeing what the others have to offer. I believe RUSHMORE is my next film I will see from Netflix...so I guess I will repost after I've seen a few more!

iam1bearcat · 08-10-2010, 06:12 PM

i enjoy Wes Anderson's films because of a few things:

1) the atmosphere. there's something extremely riveting about how he builds his films. the colors, the settings, the characters, the feeling of the film. it breathes a new life into the films. very quirky and fits well with the stories. adds another layer that most films don't have.

2) the humor. as others have said: very dry, witty, emotionally damaged characters who chastise others. some may not "get it" (much like how people either find The Office hilarious (me) or not (my GF) but i do and i love it. the films aren't necessarily 'comedies' they are dramas, but i love the humorous, dry situations the films contain.

3) the directing. Anderson has always directed in films in an eccentric manner. and the way he films scenes (many in a "book" like fashion) always sucks me in and makes me enjoy the film.

even though Life Aquatic isn't a personal favorite (i think i rated it a 3.5/5 on my first viewing years ago), i still enjoy it and it definitely isn't like a lot of other films out there. all of Anderson's films are like this, which is why i enjoy his style.

J6P · 08-10-2010, 06:47 PM

That's a very interesting take above, doctorsteve.

I think there is a certain dividing line that can be drawn between people that enjoy the work of auteurs and seek it out, and those that don't. Just as there are fimmakers that are auteurs, and filmmakers that are more collaborative.

Anderson, like Woody Allen, Stanley Kubrick, Orson Welles, Michel Gondry, Martin Scorsese, etc., all of these directors put their stamp on every inch of their movies. Every tiny detail of the set, the lighting, the music choices, the casting, all of the creative choices are arrived at from a single perspective -- the director's.

People who are predisposed to likeing Anderson are interested in the layers upon layers of detailed choices he makes. Those that aren't, aren't.

EricJ · 08-10-2010, 07:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doctorsteve

It is definitely an acquired taste. I saw bits of Rushmore - thought it was dumb. You're totally right that it feels scripted... if only it were a movie

MST3K's Mike Nelson made a quote in a Cracked.com column that summed it up perfectly:
"Rushmore feels like it been made with an entire cast who'd been brought back to life at an evil Pet Sematary."
And when Nelson calls a movie too unwatchably mean-spirited....be afraid.

(Which is why Wes's hip-for-the-sake-of-hip rubs normal viewers like nails on chalkboard:
It gets old fast, and you start wondering "Imagine a world where people actually DID talk like that...")

Chordata · 08-10-2010, 07:35 PM

Can't describe why, but I love Rushmore, Royal Tenenbaums, and Life Aquatic. It might be Bill Murray and the other amazing castmembers.

Riff Magnum · 08-10-2010, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EricJ

MST3K's Mike Nelson made a quote in a Cracked.com column that summed it up perfectly:
"Rushmore feels like it been made with an entire cast who'd been brought back to life at an evil Pet Sematary."
And when Nelson calls a movie too unwatchably mean-spirited....be afraid.

(Which is why Wes's hip-for-the-sake-of-hip rubs normal viewers like nails on chalkboard:
It gets old fast, and you start wondering "Imagine a world where people actually DID talk like that...")

That quote sums up nothing. As a matter of fact, it sounds like something a wes anderson character might say, but just not as funny.

Perhaps the haters would like it better if he did stage plays.

mikejet · 08-10-2010, 07:38 PM

Rushmore - OK
Royal - AMAZING
Fantastic Mr. Fox - AMAZING

the others....not so much

Secretagentnumber6 · 08-10-2010, 07:55 PM

I am a Wes Anderson fan. I have loved everything he has done. He can really do no wrong in my opinion. Heck, even his American Express commercial was genius in my opinion, if you haven't seen it check it here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spCknVcaSHg

J6P · 08-10-2010, 08:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EricJ

MST3K's Mike Nelson made a quote in a Cracked.com column that summed it up perfectly:
"Rushmore feels like it been made with an entire cast who'd been brought back to life at an evil Pet Sematary."
And when Nelson calls a movie too unwatchably mean-spirited....be afraid.

(Which is why Wes's hip-for-the-sake-of-hip rubs normal viewers like nails on chalkboard:
It gets old fast, and you start wondering "Imagine a world where people actually DID talk like that...")

In that article he singles out not just Rushmore, but Diner, Being John Malkovitch, Dr. Strangelove, and Annie Hall. I'm a huge MST3K and Mike Nelson fan, but that looks more like a desert island disc list to me than a list of movies to avoid.

People have different tastes.

EricJ · 08-10-2010, 08:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Secretagentnumber6

I am a Wes Anderson fan. I have loved everything he has done. He can really do no wrong in my opinion. Heck, even his American Express commercial was genius in my opinion, if you haven't seen it check it here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spCknVcaSHg

True story: When that ad came out, I actually thought Wes (following in the footsteps of other directors in AmEx ads like Scorsese and Shyamalan) was doing a smug parody on his image, of living in his own little snooty Sundance world, making overbearingly idiosyncratic non-humor, and being 180 degrees removed from anything real human audiences wanted to see...
And that if there hadn't actually been an Anderson movie called "The Darjheeling Express", you couldn't have come up with a funnier fictitious parody title.

...Unfortunately for us, he wasn't kidding.

Riff Magnum · 08-10-2010, 08:33 PM

Is hating on Wes Anderson your part time job or what?

He creates fictional movies; he doesn't need to live in "the real world."

vegeta88 · 08-10-2010, 08:50 PM

I like Wes Anderson' style because it is quirky melodrama with humor through depression and strong emotional core to many characters.

I don't like all Wes Anderson movies, Royal Tenenbaums is one of my favorite movies. I also really like Life Aquatic and Rushmore. I liked Fantastic Mr. Fox and The Darjeeling Limited was only decent.

csdot · 08-10-2010, 09:05 PM

i love the style of humor, the odd characters and his overall aesthetic in his movies (especially The Royal Tennenbaums). the visual style, the music, the costumes, set design, something about it really appeals to me. however, im not a huge fan of him, thats just what i like about the films of his i do like.
I love Bottle Rocket and The Royal Tennenbaums.
Rushmore is pretty good but i need to watch it again as i dont remember it that well.
The Life Aquatic ive tried a few times to get into, but while i still find it visually fascinating, the movie becomes a bit of a chore to sit through.
still havent seen Darjeeling or Mr Fox yet.

Secretagentnumber6 · 08-10-2010, 09:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Riff Magnum

Is hating on Wes Anderson your part time job or what?

He creates fictional movies; he doesn't need to live in "the real world."

Some people just are not fans. Rushmore is in my top ten movies of all time. Clearly he is someone not everyone will like, but those of us like me that get it, love it.

doctorsteve · 08-10-2010, 11:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EricJ

True story: When that ad came out, I actually thought Wes (following in the footsteps of other directors in AmEx ads like Scorsese and Shyamalan) was doing a smug parody on his image, of living in his own little snooty Sundance world, making overbearingly idiosyncratic non-humor, and being 180 degrees removed from anything real human audiences wanted to see...
And that if there hadn't actually been an Anderson movie called "The Darjheeling Express", you couldn't have come up with a funnier fictitious parody title.

...Unfortunately for us, he wasn't kidding.

But that's the thing... He WAS parodying himself!!!

csdot · 08-10-2010, 11:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doctorsteve

But that's the thing... He WAS parodying himself!!!

haha yeah, but i think not realizing its a joke comes from not understanding Anderson's humor. i think if you dont get/enjoy his movies, you wont get that either. ive always remembered this commercial, i thought it was hilarious.

doctorsteve · 08-11-2010, 12:11 AM

I forgot to mention that I haven''t seen Mr. Fox yet... I've heard good things though...

08-10-2010, 11:04 AM	#1
P@t_Mtl Blu-ray Duke Member since:Sep 2008 Location:Montreal Home Theater Gallery:4 Blu-ray collection:452 DVD collection:513 Trading Score:3	Good morning everyone, I have a question concerning Wes Anderson. Let me start by saying I am not a fan of his movies, not making a comment or critic on it however. I first saw Rushmore back in 1998 and then saw The Royal Tenenbaums and I sort of seen that really his style is just not for me. So I never really got around to check his other movies. My cable provider as the IFC channel (which is a great channel by the way) and I've notice on many of his movies that the rating is like a 4 or a 5 (you know the usual movie rating you might see in TV Guide for example). Most of the time 4 is average and 5 is below average. Most of the movies in Criterion would be usually at 3 and in most cases 2 or 1 if they were to show up on TV at all. So what is the major appeal for Wes Anderson? As I mention his style is just not for me and looking at ratings of his movies it seem like they are average at best yet so many people seem to rave about him. So I am wondering what is it that you like about his movies? The style, the humor.... It's just a curiosity thing on my part.

08-10-2010, 11:54 AM	#2
Grubert Blu-ray Guru Top contributor Member since:Jan 2006 Blu-ray collection:573 Blu-ray reviews:2 Trading Score:2	I largely agree with you. I've only seen two Wes Anderson movies: The Royal Tenenbaums (which I liked) and The Life Aquatic (which I didn't). His movies belong clearly in the "quirky indie" subgenre, with eccentric, dysfunctional characters and dialogue that always feels written. The reason why I connected with Tenenbaums is because there is some life inside, whereas Life Aquatic just felt like an empty exercise.

08-10-2010, 12:28 PM	#3
doctorsteve Blu-ray Samurai Member since:Apr 2007 Location:Tonawanda, NY Home Theater Gallery:15 Blu-ray collection:188 Blu-ray reviews:16	It is definitely an acquired taste. I saw bits of Rushmore - thought it was dumb. You're totally right that it feels scripted... if only it were a movie But!!! After a second viewing, I fell in love with it. Next I saw Tennenbaums and Bottle Rocket (not sure which order) Loved 'em both. Yes, the quirky characters seem unreal - these people just couldn't exist outside of Hollywood. Next was The Life Aquatic. I still hate this one - I'll tell you why later. Seen it twice - it does nothing for me. Darjeeling Limited - having become accustomed to the character interplay that seems to be Anderson's hallmark, Darjeeling is right up my alley. And now - I shall explain why: Anderson's comedic sense seems to come from the dialogue being beyond the character's capabilities. Incredibly flawed people delivering minimalistic, very dry, nearly stoic - emotional observations. It's through those emotionally based statements that the real stories are delivered to the viewer. Anderson's creative twist is the opposite of what happens in typical movies - where ordinary, 'normal' people are trying to give us extraordinary life lessons. We truly have to suspend our disbelief, and be taken along for the ride and believe that two people can find true love or happiness amongst all the chaos and hard times life has to deliver. A hard task - and why so many movies fail... they just aren't believable. Anderson takes people we KNOW just don't exist, dialogue that just doesn't happen - and tries to convince us to 'just play along' with a nod and a wink. When he DOES get us to accept these bizarre characters the way they are, he can get down to the emotional interplay that he wants to address. It's like shadow puppets - or Kabuki theatre for that matter... He wants you to get past what these people look like, and get to the feelings and emotion behind it all. I believe several of his movies are good at this (Tennenbaums being the best example, I believe), and I believe The Life Aquatic completely missed the mark at this, for me. Aquatic was SO esoteric that it may as well have been in French and filmed in B&W in a single shot... like some Calvin Klein parfum commercial. Love him or hate him, he has an interesting approach to story telling that, seems to me, is more about emotional stories rather than beginning-middle-end stories. Liked Darjeeling, and am looking forward to the Criterion release. Try Bottle Rocket if you haven't yet... Cheers, Doc

08-10-2010, 05:39 PM	#4
masoud90 Power Member Member since:Oct 2008 Location:Seattle, WA Blu-ray collection:180 Trading Score:3	Very interesting because I just added all of his I haven't seen to my netflix queue. I have seen THE DARJEELING LIMITED, FANTASTIC MR. FOX, and THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS. I loved the latter two and really liked the first one. I think I like his dry comedy style and am interested in seeing what the others have to offer. I believe RUSHMORE is my next film I will see from Netflix...so I guess I will repost after I've seen a few more!

08-10-2010, 06:12 PM	#5
iam1bearcat Blu-ray Knight Member since:Nov 2009 Location:Club Loop Home Theater Gallery:7 Blu-ray collection:54 DVD collection:28 Trading Score:29	i enjoy Wes Anderson's films because of a few things: 1) the atmosphere. there's something extremely riveting about how he builds his films. the colors, the settings, the characters, the feeling of the film. it breathes a new life into the films. very quirky and fits well with the stories. adds another layer that most films don't have. 2) the humor. as others have said: very dry, witty, emotionally damaged characters who chastise others. some may not "get it" (much like how people either find The Office hilarious (me) or not (my GF) but i do and i love it. the films aren't necessarily 'comedies' they are dramas, but i love the humorous, dry situations the films contain. 3) the directing. Anderson has always directed in films in an eccentric manner. and the way he films scenes (many in a "book" like fashion) always sucks me in and makes me enjoy the film. even though Life Aquatic isn't a personal favorite (i think i rated it a 3.5/5 on my first viewing years ago), i still enjoy it and it definitely isn't like a lot of other films out there. all of Anderson's films are like this, which is why i enjoy his style.

08-10-2010, 06:47 PM	#6
J6P Expert Member Top ranked HT gallery Member since:Aug 2007 Home Theater Gallery:117 Blu-ray collection:270	That's a very interesting take above, doctorsteve. I think there is a certain dividing line that can be drawn between people that enjoy the work of auteurs and seek it out, and those that don't. Just as there are fimmakers that are auteurs, and filmmakers that are more collaborative. Anderson, like Woody Allen, Stanley Kubrick, Orson Welles, Michel Gondry, Martin Scorsese, etc., all of these directors put their stamp on every inch of their movies. Every tiny detail of the set, the lighting, the music choices, the casting, all of the creative choices are arrived at from a single perspective -- the director's. People who are predisposed to likeing Anderson are interested in the layers upon layers of detailed choices he makes. Those that aren't, aren't.

08-10-2010, 07:35 PM	#8
Chordata Blu-ray Knight Member since:Jan 2009 Location:Home of N'Sync and the Backstreet Boys Blu-ray collection:75 Blu-ray reviews:2 Trading Score:1	Can't describe why, but I love Rushmore, Royal Tenenbaums, and Life Aquatic. It might be Bill Murray and the other amazing castmembers.

08-10-2010, 07:38 PM	#10
mikejet Banned Member since:Sep 2008 Location:Los Angeles, CA Blu-ray reviews:5 Trading Score:29	Rushmore - OK Royal - AMAZING Fantastic Mr. Fox - AMAZING the others....not so much

08-10-2010, 07:55 PM	#11
Secretagentnumber6 Blu-ray Guru Member since:Mar 2008 Location:St Louis Area Home Theater Gallery:15 Blu-ray collection:212 Trading Score:4	I am a Wes Anderson fan. I have loved everything he has done. He can really do no wrong in my opinion. Heck, even his American Express commercial was genius in my opinion, if you haven't seen it check it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spCknVcaSHg

08-10-2010, 08:33 PM	#14
Riff Magnum Blu-ray Samurai Member since:Apr 2008 Location:The Island Blu-ray collection:149	Is hating on Wes Anderson your part time job or what? He creates fictional movies; he doesn't need to live in "the real world."

08-10-2010, 08:50 PM	#15
vegeta88 Blu-ray Ninja Member since:Nov 2007 Location:CA 4K collection:94 Blu-ray collection:666 DVD collection:116 Blu-ray reviews: 6 Trading Score:1	I like Wes Anderson' style because it is quirky melodrama with humor through depression and strong emotional core to many characters. I don't like all Wes Anderson movies, Royal Tenenbaums is one of my favorite movies. I also really like Life Aquatic and Rushmore. I liked Fantastic Mr. Fox and The Darjeeling Limited was only decent.

08-10-2010, 09:05 PM	#16
csdot Blu-ray Ninja Member since:Jan 2009 Location:Interzone Blu-ray collection:927 DVD collection:93	i love the style of humor, the odd characters and his overall aesthetic in his movies (especially The Royal Tennenbaums). the visual style, the music, the costumes, set design, something about it really appeals to me. however, im not a huge fan of him, thats just what i like about the films of his i do like. I love Bottle Rocket and The Royal Tennenbaums. Rushmore is pretty good but i need to watch it again as i dont remember it that well. The Life Aquatic ive tried a few times to get into, but while i still find it visually fascinating, the movie becomes a bit of a chore to sit through. still havent seen Darjeeling or Mr Fox yet.

08-11-2010, 12:11 AM	#20
doctorsteve Blu-ray Samurai Member since:Apr 2007 Location:Tonawanda, NY Home Theater Gallery:15 Blu-ray collection:188 Blu-ray reviews:16	I forgot to mention that I haven''t seen Mr. Fox yet... I've heard good things though...

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