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 "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" Chris' Review: Steve Zissou: "Don't point that gun at him, he's an unpaid intern." It's pretty much hit and miss with me and Wes Anderson. I absolutely loved Rushmore but couldn't stand The Royal Tenunbaums. This movie, though stands itself apart from the others. I'm not sure if it's the subject material, if Anderson, himself, is growing, or if it was the tremendous abilities of Bill Murray. Whatever the reasons... I loved it. There is quite a bit of subtext to this movie (and all of Anderson's movies) that I think a lot of people miss. Sure, he takes some mundane situations, puts in some odd, yet oddly human characters, mixes it together with a wink and nudge of comedy and comes up with some really interesting moments. I really feel that part of what he's trying to do is make very real contrasts between this wild fantasy life of the movies and our real lives; viewing ourselves in a mirror, even if through a surreal camera's eye. Everything in Life Aquatic is about contrasts. Take a look at the main character, Steve Zissou (Bill Murray), the contrasts in his character are wildly apparent: In one scene, we see Steve Zissou and his team in an arctic environment, a clip from one of their movies. In it he saves a small white rodent and her very adorable babies, ever the tender naturalist. Within a couple of scenes, we see the real-life, off-camera, Steve and he's sitting down at a table with his wife and a small lizard crawls onto his hand. With as callous a demeanor as one can imagine, he flicks the invader off his hand. Zissou is known from his movies as a world explorer, a vastly intellectual man, someone at one with nature; an adventurer of great renown... but in every real life scene we see the merchandising whore that he really is. Taking a cue from Krusty the Clown, Zissou has an off screen presence that is wildly different than his onscreen presence and he markets everything he can get his hands on. From a club for young adventurers to a Steve Zissou pinball machine. Throughout the movie we see the multiple and contrasting facets of Zissou's personality. From childish jealousy as he barges in on the journalist, Jane Winslett-Richardson (Cate Blanchett) to the superhuman action hero that rids his boat of pirates single-handedly. From the doddering incompetence of charting a course through unprotected waters or dealing with upscale media events, to the calm reason and resolve that only a lifetime of experience can summon as he calmly walks through every moment of breaking into a marine outpost or rescuing the corporate stooge (Bud Cort) from the pirates. Then you have a drastic dichotomy in his masculinity. From his rival beating him at every turn, obtaining more funding, even having a much bigger boat (wonder what the writer was inferring here, hmmm?) and his wife telling the journalist how he "shoots blanks" (He's not about hammering home the point or anything, is he?) to massive shows of masculinity and bravado as he takes on pirates, rescues crew, and jumps into shark infested waters. Now, in case you haven't quite gotten the point of contrasts from the main character, the movie is rife with them. We're shown how the Belafonte (Zissou's boat) is in a tragic state of disrepair and neglect, from the oil-bearings in the engine room to the dereliction in maintenance inspection on the helicopter. We're enlightened constantly to the shortage of funding, no money for repairs, no money for equipment... yet somehow they find a way for a custom designed hot tub room and an on-staff masseuse. We're treated to realistic shots of the Belafonte cutting through the waves, and then cut to an interior that is purposely created to give a dollhouse style effect to the scenes. We see majestic nature scenes, beautiful location shots, and then we have purposely unrealistic CGI wildlife inhabiting it. We have the cheesy, techno-pop soundtracks of Zissou's exploration movies played on cheap keyboards, contrasted by samba-style, acoustic, lilting, Brazilian-Portuguese rock song covers. The biggest contrast of all, and the thing that really sets Anderson apart from the crowd, is the heartfelt moments, the tear-jerk scenes where we see the pain, jealousy, or betrayal... butted right up against absurdity. From the scene where Zissou's best friend gets eaten by a shark, to the comment by Klaus Daimler (Willem DaFoe) that Zissou has "crazy eye". The contrasts in this movie are the first thing that make it good... the second, and almost as important, is Bill Murray. Bill Murray has come a long way from his Caddyshack days. He has inadvertently become the king of minimalist comedy. He puts on a serious, dead-pan performance, but always has this twinkle in his eye, like he's got one foot out the door and is whispering to the guy in the hall that it's all really a joke. It's this ability that makes Murray such a perfect fit for Anderson's films. That perfect talent to make everything look serious, yet not serious at the same time. Bill Murray needs some more awards. I really can't find much fault in this movie. The visuals are exactly perfect for what the movie needs, with the oddball CGI wildlife and the fun dollhouse boat. The writing and direction are top notch... with little tidbits of pop-culture thrown in for those with a sharp eye. The acting was all very well done with exceptional performances by Bill Murray (obviously), Willem Defoe, Cate Blanchett, Angelica Houston, and even Jeff Goldblum. The only thing that I could possibly criticize is that, on occasion, you don't know if you're supposed to be laughing or not. Much of the story feels like an inside joke that you're only now, being made aware of. Like an outsider to a group of new friends, you're self-conscious about laughing in the wrong place, or forgetting to laugh at something that was "obviously funny." Sometimes you're just left wondering if the director was joking this time... or was he being serious. Overall, I loved this movie and it's the kind of movie that you could watch over and over and find something new each time. I give it 7 thumbs up. Even if it wasn't good on so many other levels... it has the best gratuitous, comedy use of boobs I've ever seen... so for that reason alone, I'll have to pick up a copy.   Jim's Review: In Jim's stead: Guest Reviewer Madrigal Costello offers up her review of the movie: There are quite a lot of ways to approach "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou." At its most basic, it's the story of man trying to complete the last wildlife documentary of his long career, despite numerous obstacles. And just at this alone a number of different aspects come up. The film seems to be an odd mixture of Moby-Dick and "This is Spinal Tap." This last voyage is not about discovery as previous ones were, but a quest for vengeance against the shark that took the life of the protagonist's best friend on the last mission. But with the behind-the-scenes of the documentary style, we're able to see that even in nature shows, what's on the camera is far from the unadulterated truth. Viewers who remember writer and director Wes Anderson's "Rushmore" will probably receive this movie well, as it contains a similar story of zeal, and features Bill Murray in his new kind of comedic role. Instead of the standard comedy of movies like "Ghostbusters" and even "What About Bob?" he has blended tragedy and comedy in his performances, making a person who can be disturbingly realistic, simultaneously painful to watch, yet extremely entertaining. From this a sense of sardonic, wry comedy works through the movie, yet they're fully capable of seamlessly blending in sorrow and terror as the story calls for it. Along with Bill Murray, they've put together a great cast. Anjelica Houston, who previously appeared in Wes Anderson's "The Royal Tennenbaums" is able to work subtly and powerfully as Bill Murray's ex-wife. Owen Wilson, also of "The Royal Tennenbaums" is able to provide an every-man perspective, yet also show just how a person can get caught up in Zissou's adventurous sort of life. Playing Zissou's might-be son, his character introduces a whole new facet as the film explores family relationships and exactly what is required in being a good man and/or good father. Cate Blanchett does quite well as a reporter following along on the mission, a sometime devoted fan of the Zissou films, but also quite able to pick apart the carefully constructed realities of the documentary, and also of the life that Zissou leads. She's still doing her Kate Hepburn accent from "The Aviator" – I have no idea if it's because she really thought it would work for the reporter, or because that's the only American accent she could currently do. It can throw a person at first, but then one gets used to it. Or just imagines Hepburn playing the part, since she might have done it similarly. One welcome surprise was Willem Defoe as the pathetically funny crewman Klaus who provides a great example of loyalty, and manages to make it seem reasonable that a crew might follow someone like the Zissou portrayed. The rest of the crew and other characters function well – and are able to bring up some pretty strong questions about the importance of loyalty, and when disloyalty is more important. One of the film's strongest aspects is that it remains unpredictable, though the plot doesn't seem entirely random. The crew suffers almost every possible mishap from a lack of funding to pirate attacks – and yet they're able to somewhat triumph over each in their own way, maybe not always the most morally right way, but one is never able to entirely discount any of them. The other great draw is the sense of wonder they're able to conjure. The film's special effects are at once bizarre and entirely appropriate. Instead of the normal ways of filming a ship, they present a side-view that makes it resemble a doll-house with real people inside. The sea life is based on realism, but has just animation added to make them all surreal. When staring at some of the colorful new species of crabs, sea horses and sharks, one gets a sense of what it would have been like for sea explorers such as Jacques Costeau, finding previously unknown and unanticipated species. And, maybe, one gets why such discovery can be worth all the danger and expense, and how it can maybe redeem those discoverers who've sacrificed money, friends, family and safety for it. On a scale of 1 to 10, this gets a solid 9. BackHome - Info - Reviews - Map - Message Board - Photo Album |
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