Wes Anderson has become one of today’s hottest directors, and has developed a cult following for his quirky, original films like Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums. Now he re-unites with Bill Murray and Owen Wilson to bring us the new film, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.
Internationally famous oceanographer and documentary filmmaker Steve Zissou (Murray) and his crew, Team Zissou, are off on a mission to track down a mysterious Jaguar Shark that killed Zissou’s partner on their last documentary.
Joining Team Zissou on its voyage are a young airline pilot who may or may not be Zissou’s son (Owen Wilson), and a beautiful reporter (Cate Blanchett), aboard to document the adventure.
The once great Zissou is now a fallen star facing bankruptcy, so you are about to jump aboard what could be Team Zissou’s final adventure.
I should let you know I am one of Wes Anderson’s biggest fans, I believe Rushmore is one of the best, most complete films of the past 10 years. So, being a huge fan I had high expectations for this film.
The film has a number of things one might expect from an Anderson film, unusual characters, beautiful original sets, great music and a very artistic and fantastic quality that his become the signature of Anderson’s work.
Unfortunately, the film is more style than substance, and despite some great performances from some great actors, it is never really able to find itself.
Its main failing comes when it attempts to let its many metaphors communicate its message. Rather than allowing the characters to present the story in a straightforward manner, it relies upon its metaphors to communicate the film’s message below the surface.
In a recent interview writer/director M. Night Shyamalan, explained how he writes films on different levels, often having people connect to a different message in his film, rather than the surface plot. But, he says for a film to work, the first level or the surface plot of the film has to work.
This is the problem with Life Aquatic, it works on a level below the surface, but does not work as a conventional story driven film. The subtleties of the film dominate for better or worse.
Anderson often swings for the fences, going for amazing stories with extremely unique looks and characters. In the past it has worked, but I believe this film’s flaws make it fall short of a home run.
However, having said all that, a less than perfect Anderson film is better than the majority of the crap Hollywood pumps out. So you be the judge on this one, just be prepared for a not-so-ordinary film.
