The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou

[Finn]

I'm still looking forward to it no matter what E&R say. Of course they didn't like Dogville either and I still think that's the best film all year.

[grand theft sparrow]

mod nailed it 100%.  I don't have to write a review; he already did it for me.  

And I completely understand why mutinyco said it was an overindulgent piece of shit.  I disagree with him but I understand.  

I've found that with some films, I need a second viewing in order to solidify my thoughts on them.  Punch Drunk Love was one of those films for me.  Coming out of Life Aquatic last night, I felt EXACTLY how I felt coming out of PDL, which I liked when I first saw it but loved when I saw it the second time on DVD.  Now that I know what to expect, I can watch Life Aquatic the next time and judge it on its own merit and not solely in relation to Wes' previous films.

But as it stands right now, I loved Bottle Rocket, Rushmore would go in my top 100 favorites of all time, and Tenenbaums would go in my top 50 easily... Life Aquatic doesn't meet those standards but a lesser Wes Anderson film is still worthwhile.

[Redlum]

Mr. Anderson and Stephen Hillenburg, Mr. Squarepants's creator, share not only a taste for nautical nonsense, but also a willingness to carry the banner of unfettered imaginative silliness into battle against the tyranny of maturity.

Great.

[Jeremy Blackman]

Mr. Murray turns tiny gestures and sly, off-beat line readings into a deadpan tour-de-force

For the love of God, why must A. O. Scott say tour-de-force in every review? Seriously, I purposefully looked for that phrase in this review, of all reviews, and found it.

[NEON MERCURY]

in honor if wes andersons new movie ..i decided to share a "shark-themed" joke for you..


here goes.........

HoW Do Yo KnOw If A ShArK aCcIdEnTlY sUcKeD yOuR pEnIs?.........................



your penis looks like a flute

[Ravi]

Ebert didn't like Rushmore either.  I love the guy, but he doesn't get Anderson, that's for sure.

Ebert wrote about Rushmore:

The movie turns into a strategic duel between Max and Blume, and that could be funny, too, except that it gets a little mean when Max spills the beans to Blume's wife, and feels too contrived. When plotting replaces stage-setting and character development, the air goes out of the movie.

I agree with him that the film becomes plot-oriented at this point but I love the film anyways.  I am disappointed in the reviews of Life Aquatic posted here but I will see it nonetheless.  I'm sure there will be a lot to admire about it, even if it doesn't completely succeed.

[abuck1220]

It's hanging a 55% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 60% on MetaCritic. I stand by my opinion.

well, if you and tony medley from the tolucan times say it sucks, that's enough for me. congrats on being 'right'.

[ono]

Ebert wrote about Rushmore:

The movie turns into a strategic duel between Max and Blume, and that could be funny, too, except that it gets a little mean...

I agree with him...

I agreed with Ebert, too, about Rushmore getting a little mean-spirited there (and dangerous -- the bike stealing, and then Max's cutting of Blume's brakes), and it was one of the only things that really detracted from the movie for me.  Seems as if Ebert can get hung up on one thing to dislike about a movie and not see the whole picture.

[Ravi]

Ebert wrote about Rushmore:

The movie turns into a strategic duel between Max and Blume, and that could be funny, too, except that it gets a little mean...

I agree with him...

I agreed with Ebert, too, about Rushmore getting a little mean-spirited there (and dangerous -- the bike stealing, and then Max's cutting of Blume's brakes), and it was one of the only things that really detracted from the movie for me.  Seems as if Ebert can get hung up on one thing to dislike about a movie and not see the whole picture.

Perhaps we are more forgiving than Ebert of Rushmore because we were dorky teenage boys when we saw it?

[ono]

Maybe.  Although actually, I don't think I saw it until I was like ... 22.  Okay, so dorky young adults who easily succumb to bittersweet nostalgia.

[cowboykurtis]

so you're all aware i saw this movie today

[ono]

so you're all aware i saw this movie today

That bad, huh?

[cowboykurtis]

so you're all aware i saw this movie today

That bad, huh?

wonderful to be exact

[modage]

REMINDER: SNTK out tomorrow.

interview with maxim MINOR SPOILERS...

Underwater Times: The Life Aquatic director Wes Anderson comes up for air to talk stuffed Speedos and Bill Murray.

Interview by Paul Ulane

Not many directors have been as consistent, or as consistently strange, as Wes Anderson over the first four films of his career. Whether he gets you to relate to the rebel schoolboy (Rushmore), the rebel twentysomething (Bottle Rocket), or the rebel billionaire (The Royal Tenenbaums), Anderson has a unique style that's less funny "ha-ha" and more funny "ha-huh?" Now, in The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou, he sets sail with Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, and Cate Blanchett on a high-seas journey, pitting man against shark...and ex-wife...and a couple of pirates, too. Here's what the director had to say about action, adventure, and Jerry Bruckheimer.

Do Bill Murray and Owen Wilson have naked pictures of you—they keep making it into your movies.
[laughs] Those are two of my favorite actors. Owen and I grew up together. The first movies that I did, we wrote together. I directed them and Owen acted in them. Then, you know, Bill's one of my favorites. So I'm just lucky enough to get to work with my top choices.

Speaking of Bill, what's he got to do to win an Oscar?
I don't know. But whatever it is, he probably won't do it.

Do you think he has any chance with Aquatic?
He'd probably have a better chance if it was directed by Ron Howard.

There are a couple of pulse-pounding shootout sequences in Aquatic—got any plans to team up with Jerry Bruckheimer or Joel Schumacher for a big-budget action flick?
I don't think so. For one thing, when your hero during a shootout is wearing a striped Speedo and bathrobe, that tends to scare away the people who want to make hundreds of millions.

Did you catch any of the actors stuffing their crotches before the Speedo scenes?
No, no—they would never do that. These people are too honest. These are method actors.

Do you ever catch yourself laughing at your own movies?
Not much, because by the time it's a movie, I've seen it too many times. I laugh if I hear somebody else laugh and I'm thinking, Thank God.

The names for your characters are always strange. Do those just pop into your head or do you spend time creating them?
Well, "Zissou" comes from this French photographer Jacques Henri Lartigue. He's one of my favorite photographers, and there are many pictures of his adventurer and inventor brother, Maurice, who was nicknamed Zissou. So they're all from different references and ideas.

We're sorry we asked. Ever walk around in matching outfits when you were younger, or is that just your characters?
Well, with Zissou, that's a uniform for his operation, so I think that's his idea. But for the one in Tenenbaums, um...that was just supposed to be funny.

Do you have a favorite character you've created?
That's a tough one. I think the two best realized characters were what Jason Schwartzman did in Rushmore—I feel like he really brought that character to life—and Owen in Bottle Rocket.

Are there any current directors out right now whose work you enjoy?
I liked Mike Nichols' new movie, Closer, quite a lot. And I ♥ Huckabees. I felt like David O. Russell was pushing the envelope in every scene and made a movie that would deliberately alienate a big part of the audience. But it connects with the other part of the audience in a way that if it didn't alienate the other half, it would never have connected with the first.

Would you ever direct anything you didn't write?
Yeah, if somebody handed me the right thing and I got around to reading it...My girlfriend is standing across the room shaking her head saying, "No, you wouldn't."

We'll just leave the first part of that answer in and make you look good.
[laughs] No, you can include that.

You have a pretty dedicated fan base. Is there any particular line that fans come up to you and quote a lot?
Yes. They always say to me, "Why are you wearing that tape on your nose?" And I say to them, "Exactly."

[cowboykurtis]

Would you ever direct anything you didn't write?
Yeah, if somebody handed me the right thing and I got around to reading it...My girlfriend is standing across the room shaking her head saying, "No, you wouldn't."
"[/size]

wes doesn't wear the pants