I have to admit that this is the first Wes Anderson film I've seen. After finally viewing his latest film The Grand Budapest Hotel, I might have to watch more of his films...
The Grand Budapest Hotel is directed by Wes Anderson and stars an enormous cast of some great actors, but the lead is played by Ralph Fiennes. The film tells the story of Zero, the current owner and former lobby-boy of the Grand Budapest Hotel, and of original owner M. Gustave. To summarise, when a very elderly woman dies Gustave is left behind a very expensive painting called "Boy with apple", which sees the elderly woman's family become exceedingly jealous. Then, Gustave is framed for murder and its up to him and Zero to escape from prison and prove Gustave's innocence by solving the case.
This movie surprised me so much because I don't think I've ever seen a movie like it. It's incredibly unique and original, along with being consistently witty, moving and intense. This film had a lot of dimensions to it resulting in a viewing experience of diverse emotions. The film, as mentioned previously, is consistently funny from very beginning to very end. The jokes themselves don't rely on the audience to die with laughter or anything but they did make me chuckle countless times because the humour was handled really well indeed.
Who knew that Ralph Fiennes was such a good comedic actor? Apparently Wes Anderson did! Fiennes is on fire in this movie, he is so compelling as the concierge Gustave to the point where it was difficult for me to take my eyes of him and notice other people were in a scene. He delivers Wes Anderson dialogue perfectly in what is probably the best performance of the year so far.
His lobby boy Zero was also played brilliantly, but what I loved the most was the hilarious back and forth and dynamic between Zero and Gustave, which typified the film because it was very odd indeed, but strangely compelling.
The supporting work in this movie is top notch. Jeff Goldblum, Willem Dafoe, Bill Murray, Jude Law, Adrien Brody, Edward Norton. The list goes on, and they all do very well with the screen time they have and all contribute to the story in some way shape or form.
But the reason why I think The Grand Budapest Hotel was so successful at what it was trying to do was that it was so visually astounding. It used every single technical filmmaking aspect in a way which created a world which you as an audience member knew was blatantly fictional, but felt real because of the great acting and the characters on screen. The film felt almost dreamlike to me, and in the best way possible. It transported me out of the movie theatre into a fictional realm I never knew existed.
It's a visual banquet this film. The use of miniatures was integtrated well, the music fit perfectly, the colours, set design, costumes and make up all mixed together to create thus fictional world which Wes Anderson meticulously designed. The film also sees Wes Anderson's filming style where everything is in the dead centre of the screen, which made everything seem even more detailed and precise. I honestly loved this movie, it was such a refreshing film experience for me that I adored experiencing.
If I have one complaint, it would be that at times the violence in the movie just seems to be randomly thrown in for the sake of violence being thrown in. Also, this film probably isn't for the general film audience and appreciation for filmmaking and different styles is needed.
From what I've seen there has already been 3 great movies to come out in 2014; the Lego Movie, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and this. The Grand Budapest Hotel is truly a great film, and I loved it:
Rating - A
1 sentence summary - Unique, funny, clever and dreamlike, The Grand Budapest Hotel uses its precision and detail to transport you to a fictional realm, one that you won't want to leave!
Thanks for reading,
Matt
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