March 9, 2005 | Uncategorized
I want to write like Wes Anderson. Why can’t I write like Wes Anderson?
Went to see The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou last night at the cinema and I LOVED IT. Every now and then you see a film that just clicks with you–the atmosphere, the filming, the story, the characters, the music, the aesthetic, everything. Anderson’s The Royal Tenenbaums was one of those for me. I loved its quirkiness, its “frame” of texts and cartoons, the setting, the bizarre, isolated characters with their human weaknesses and need for connection. I loved the overstatement of the costumes, setting, and character quirks, and the understatement of the acting and the relationships.
The Life Aquatic does the same thing: it’s a wildly improbable film that explores relationships so, so gently and tenderly. It’s in no way naturalistic, but its affectations are its charm and point out the truth of the characters’ emotions. Anderson seems to have a love for dollhouse settings, for meticulous retro detail, for fond parody, for spare dialogue, for tableaux.
The entire movie was a treat, but for me the biggest smile was when I saw the character of Bill, the bank stooge, was played by Bud Cort, who was the hero of my favourite film of all time, Harold and Maude (1971). Another funny, wildly improbable, incredibly touching film.
And yes, the film has Owen Wilson in it and I’m talking about the film itself instead of how lovely and gorgeous he is. You know I like a film when I’m more interested in the story than Owen.
Plus, the soundtrack is pretty much all David Bowie songs sung in Portugese. Fantastic.
Rosalind Mitchell says:
I want to write like Wes Anderson. Why can’t I write like Wes Anderson?Because you write like Julie Cohen, dumbo! If I want to read Wes Anderson I’ll read Wes Anderson. If I want to read Julie Cohen I’ll read Julie Cohen and I’ll feel cheated if she sounds just like Wes Anderson.
Who’s Wes Anderson anyway?