I don't get Wes Anderson

Rushmore
Royal Tenenbaums
Darjeeling
Bottle Rocket (although that movie had a different purpose than the others)


Zissou

The only thing he shares with PT Anderson is a name and an era. Other than that, they are completely different filmmakers.

 

And Bubbler, go rent Tenenbaums this weekend.

Worth it.

 

Couldn't agree more. That, along with Life Aquatic and Rushmore are three great flicks. Darjeeling wasn't as good as those three but still, if Anderson's name is on something I'll probably pay the eight bucks or whatever to watch it in the theater.

 

i could watch rushmore and tennenbaums a million times and still look forward to them. darjelling and zissou are right behind them. anderson just nails "it" in some many different ways.

 

Haven't seen Darjeeling, but I love every Wes Anderson movie, and Tenenbaums is one of my favorite movies.

 

I don't get him.

 

Wes is my favorite director/screenwriter by far. Nobody is even in the same ballpark really, and hasn't been for a long time. I think to really appreciate his films you have to be of a certain personality. Someone not afraid of whimsy, someone who views himself as an outsider to some or most things. Someone who doesn't mind buying into a parallel universe for two hours, one just slightly distinct from our own.

The biggest theme I see in Wes's movies is the search for acceptance for who you are no matter what it is you are. That it is not reasonable to adapt to the world, rather, it is your responsibility to find others who see you for what you are and accept you for it.

His movies are about family and bonds, whether by blood or by choice.

I always say that I don't like a Wes movie until I've seen it at least three times. That there are just too many nuances to them to comprehend in one or two sittings. That it takes the third time for the magic of them to sprout on you, and from there on you could watch them over and over again and never get tired of them. I say it is a shame that most people aren't able to get through what seems odd or pretentious at first glance. But I've seen Life Aquatic probably 50 times by now, Rushmore and Tenenbaums 20 times a piece, and bottle rocket nine or ten times. Have only seen Darjeeling once, and wasn't overly keen to it. The biggest disappointment was the soundtrack. But, Wes had to cut back given that nobody goes to see his movies anyway. Anyway, I imagine things will pick up for Darjeeling once it gets a few more viewings.

 

I totally dug the Darjeeling soundtrack. If Wes Anderson does twenty more films, you could do a pretty good Kinks compilation from his soundtracks.

 

I'm all for nuance, but if you don't like a movie the first two times you see it, why would you watch a third?

I think someone else mentioned it, and perhaps it's a part of Anderson's themes of being an outsider, but I can't stand the emotional detachment of all the characters. It leaves me flat and I find myself not caring about any of them.

 

LOVE Rushmore.

Like Darjeeling.

Still take PTA every day and night, though. I think Magnolia is an absolute fucking masterpiece, and Punch-Drunk Love is fantastic.

 

the emotional detachment is what makes the characters so f'ing great. so many great lines, so many great scenes all because of that emotional detachment. "you dropped your cigarettes." "those aren't mine." "they fell out of your jacket."

 

Eh ... if they don't care, why should I? And the fact that they all share that detachment makes the characters virtually indistinguishable. Outside of Steve Zissou, I can't remember the names of any of Anderson's characters.

Watching an entire cast muddle its way through a movie like they're on an elephant's dose of Xanax just doesn't do it for me, much less watching them do it in several movies.