The Grand Budapest Hotel: Wes Anderson puts his plate full of cinematic tricks to beautiful use in his latest effort--a well paced period piece. His films always have something unique about them that always make Andersons films seem Wes Anderson-y. Usually his choices in portrait-like shots, use of a wide lens (yet he uses a 4:3 aspect ratio instead of 16:9) and an interesting approach to the term shot reverse shot. This film is as Wes Anderson-y out of all of his films, but it doesnt hold back how much of a delightful ride he takes you on. Taking place in a few different time periods (most notably the early 1930s) Anderson takes you on a journey through the eyes of Zero Mustafa, a bell hop (or in the films terms lobby boy) turned owner and he tells an extremely fascinating story of his rags to riches life, and it comes down to a painting. The painting is a remarkable work of art, according to the film and this film can be described that way too! Remarkable cast, from newcomers to Anderson veterans, a thrilling script (also beyond clever and funny) out of this world art direction and visuals, and a director that continues to make a name for himself in the film world with his own style toward the medium. Speaking of the cast, Ralph Fiennes gives his best performance yet as M. Gustave. Very funny actually, from an actor that usually portrays villains but also has an incredible range in period pieces and artsy films. He continues to astound his audiences and I hope he gets some awards consideration for his smooth yet fast talking M. Gustave. One of the biggest standouts is newcomer Tony Revolori, who plays the young Zero Mustafa (while brilliant veteran F Murray Abraham played the older Zero). Revolori plays a more reserved and straight to the point character, (someone who wants to work his way up) like an opposite to Fiennes character and their chemistry is spot on, as they both seem to control one another in different situations. They play off of each other very well and its fun to see. One actor makes an appearance and it was shocking to see him in a film after his big years in the 80s and 90s. That actor is Jeff Goldblum. Yes I said that right. Jeff Goldblum is in this film, even if he may have made some appearances in tv shows, but he was in a straight to theater film and its cool to see him back. The cast ensemble seems endless, including a hilarious Adrien Brody (best first line to introduce his character), Anderson veterans Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman, a weird looking Willem Dafoe (like always) Saorise Ronan, and more! All of them hold their ground and give great support to Andersons latest adventure. I guess only Wes Anderson can employ such an amazing ensemble for this film, which I feel like I can call a period caper. In other words, a period piece with a side of an adventure caper. Low key at first, then Ralph Fiennes is introduced, and its all fun from there. It is surprisingly short, at an hour and 39 minute runtime, but so much is happening that it may feel longer to some, but that made it feel like that I was so sucked into the story that I was emotionally invested and didnt want it to end. Cannot wait for his next but I can only hope this review would be enough to recommend this film to everyone as its now in theaters after only being shown at the Ritz every ten minutes. Its finally in a theater near you, and I hope you see it sometime soon! 9.5/10
Posted on: Sun, 06 Apr 2014 03:26:54 +0000
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