I think I may have seen a perfect film.
The Grand Budapest Hotel is the latest from Wes Anderson who seems to have hit a career high with this period caper comedy.
I now regard him as my generation’s Fellini:
In The Grand Budapest Hotel, every frame of every shot of every scene is art.
The comedy is not Hollywood. There are elements of circus slapstick. Passionate nuttiness. Nutty passions.
The locations and set designs do what I want a movie to do to me – take me there and leave me there.
Every actor’s movement is precise and as deliberate as ballet.
There is an original exploration of artifice in terms of the moustache.
Every character is deeply flawed and we like them not in spite of those flaws but because of them.
Wes Anderson films embrace human frailty and show us ways to appreciate the eccentricities, oddness, selfishness and outright weirdness of individuals.
There is a freedom of discovery in learning to like people who are not like you. The unlikliest of friendships can glean the biggest rewards.
And he arouses deep respect for characters who can maintain manners and dignity in the most dire of circumstances. A gentleman is a gentleman in all situations without exception, without excuses, because that is who he is.
It’s best to say little about something you love so much, it’ll just be lush gush.
I will say – it’s a 10 out of 10 film for me and one I would go back to see again on the big screen.
Check out the cast of characters:
Here’s an interview with 2 of the stars:
And here’s the trailer that seduced me from the first time I saw it:
As I left the cinema, I felt connected to everything wonderful in the world. And that kind of power I attribute to great art.
Wes Anderson is one of our great cinematic artists.
BTW – I would like to draw one distinction for those who get the Anderson filmmakers confused.
This is Wes Anderson:
He made Moonrise Kingdom, The Darjeeling Ltd, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Life Acquatic With Steve Zissou, The Royal Tenenbaums
This is Paul Thomas Anderson:
He made Boogie Nights, Magnolia, There Will Be Blood, The Master
And here’s Paul W S Anderson:
The only one of his films I liked was Death Race.