Wes Anderson Tells a Winding Story in "The French Dispatch" Trailer

Scene from The French Dispatch

Over his past few films, it feels like director Wes Anderson has perfected the art of getting your hopes up for the next Oscar season. Who could forget how The Grand Budapest Hotel released its first trailer on the heels of the 2015 Academy Awards, or how Isle of Dogs made 2018 feel like it would be a better year for animation? Well, it looks like he's outdone himself by dropping a trailer within the week following this year's ceremony. Just as everyone is wrapping up their thoughts on Parasite's historic win, Anderson is here to remind you that cinema is an evolving art form and that soon there will be a new class to talk about. With The French Dispatch, he adds his name to the 2020 prognostication early, making one excited to see his latest crowded fare look like another masterpiece that's going to dominate the conversation.

Composing Greatness: #4. Oscars 2019 Edition - "Isle of Dogs"

Scene from Isle of Dogs

Welcome to a very special edition of Composing Greatness. In this limited series, I will be looking at the five scores nominated for this year's Best Original Score category. To avoid favoritism, the list will be done in alphabetical order of composers and feature the same guidelines as the original series. This is meant to explore the music behind the great films of 2018, and provide insight into what makes each of them special and whether or not they deserved to be nominated at all. Join me all week as I listen to the  music, leave some thoughts, and hopefully sway you to check out these wonderful, wonderful scores.

Review: "Isle of Dogs" Proves that Anderson Can Make Garbage Beautiful

Scene from Isle of Dogs

*Note: Originally published on Optigrab

How can director Wes Anderson, a man on the verge of self-parody, continue to be one of the defining independent auteurs of modern cinema? It seemed like he reached the apex with the Oscar-winning The Grand Budapest Hotel where his lavish style was met with madcap energy and a subtle attack on his critics. It seems impossible for him to be as charming and artful without at some point stretching too far beyond the stratosphere. Thankfully, Isle of Dogs is not that. Instead, it's a reinvention of narrative, combining Japanese influence with his posh sensibilities. As much issues could lie in a film that features the white voice actors as heroes, Anderson has more on his mind that is interesting, poignant, and innovative in ways that prove he still has a lot to say, even if visually he can't get any more interesting. 

The First "Isle of Dogs" Trailer is Wes Anderson Back in His Great Old Animated Ways

Scene from Isle of Dogs

In general, one could believe that stop motion animation is an inferior art form. After all, it takes so long to get right that studios like Pixar and Dreamworks Animation just bypass the endeavor all together. However, there's something to be said for filmmakers who pull it off. In 2009, director Wes Anderson did just that with the amazing Fantastic Mr. Fox. It will be nine years since the animated world had last seen him, but the first trailer for Isle of Dogs has the familiar sense of whimsy and awe that even his live action movies have. It may seem a little disconcerting at times, but there's no denying that an Anderson animated tale can't be told any other way than stop motion. It wouldn't be quirky enough.

A Look at Roald Dahl's Box Office Curse

Scene from The BFG

While everyone is busy today celebrating Independence Day, it looks like director Steven Spielberg may have a bit of worry on his hands. His latest film The BFG opened this past weekend, and the results were far from the stellar numbers that you'd expect from the man behind Jaws and Jurassic Park. With an estimated $18 million opening weekend for a film budgeted at approximately $140 million, it's going to need major business overseas to even recoup its initial cost. However, what if I were to say that this is pretty common for movies adapted from Roald Dahl books? Yes, to date there has only been one runaway hit of the seven big screen adaptations, and it's one of the less revered titles on the list. The following is a look at those films and the curse of Dahl.

Why Noah Baumbach is the Great American Director of Contemporary Life

Noah Baumbach

It wasn't long ago where I could say that I didn't like the work of director Noah Baumbach. It wasn't a vitriolic hatred. It was one of those apathetic things in which his work just didn't seem appealing. Of course, he had made The Squid and The Whale: a film that is still one of the rawest and truest looks into a divorce. But what else really was there? Greenberg felt like it was a retread to the navel gazing indie movement that Joe Swanberg perfected and most people hated. In fact, he was arguably better on script duties, hitting a home run with his second collaboration with Wes Anderson called Fantastic Mr. Fox, which is still one of the best animated films in recent years. In a way, there was something in that experience that got me to care. You see, it was a film that helped me to understand the appeal of Baumbach. In fact, I may even go as far as to think that he is one of my favorite working American directors now.

Birthday Take: Wes Anderson in "Fantastic Mr. Fox" (2009)

Scene from Fantastic Mr. Fox

Welcome to The Birthday Take, a column dedicated to celebrating Oscar nominees and winners' birthdays by paying tribute to the work that got them noticed. This isn't meant to be an exhaustive retrospective, but more of a highlight of one nominated work that makes them noteworthy. The column will run whenever there is a birthday and will hopefully give a dense exploration of the finest performances and techniques applied to film. So please join me as we blow out the candles and dig into the delicious substance.

The Directors Project: #7 - Wes Anderson

Scene from Cinema Paradiso

With the many lists and essays written on the subject of film, there has been one thing that The Oscar Buzz has tried to understand: Who is my favorite of the film world? For 10 weeks this summer, I will be exploring this with a countdown of the Top 50 names based on a numerical ranking of ratings from various sources, the following is a list of directors who rank above everyone else. With occasional upsets, this is intended as both a discussion opener as well as a better understanding of me as a film critic and fan. Please enjoy and leave any comments you have regarding the entry's selection.

For Your Consideration: Introducing Wes Anderson's Dead Animal Trilogy

Left to right: Kara Hayward and Jared Gilman in Moonrise Kingdom

For many, director Wes Anderson's filmography has grown distinctly of a singular piece. His twee, almost to the point of parody, technique of turning the world into a children's book has made him one of the most excitingly distinct voices in modern cinema. His vision has become so distinct that it is possible to believe that it is all one vision. It is in this regards that I pitch to you The Dead Animal Trilogy. It may seem like a far fetched concept, but if you stick with me, I will show you why this may be been his ulterior motives all along.

Review: "The Grand Budapest Hotel" is Anderson's Most Beautiful and Audacious Film to Date

Left to right: Tony Revolori and Ralph Fiennes

Few films have been as much buzzed about in 2014 more than director Wes Andersons' The Grand Budapest Hotel. From its box office records to critical acclaim, the director's vision is one of the most distinct, whimsical, and original films with a distinct color pallet and a strange narrative structure. While all of it is excessive, this is all part of a grander vision that poses the question of how far cinema can go and then shattering those expectations. It is a film that triumphs because of how realized everything is. This is the closest to an epic that Anderson has ever made and with this departure, he has made one of his most enjoyably accessible films to date.

"The Grand Budapest Hotel" Trailer Debuts with Whimsical Excitement

I know that we still need to get through the 2013 Oscar season, but now would be as good of a time as any to speculate on potential front runners for next year's race. I'm not talking about films that were delayed, such as Foxcatcher or Grace of Monaco, but new releases that have yet to prove their muster. It may not open up until March 7, but the debut trailer for director Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel is looking to continue his hot streak of fun, ambitious cinema.

Here are Reasons Why "Moonrise Kingdom" Deserves a Best Picture Nomination

Left to right: Kara Hayward and Jared Gilman

Is director Wes Anderson ready for a Best Director nomination? I'd like to think yes. With Moonrise Kingdom, he has taken the story of puppy love, transplanted it at summer camp, and turned it into one of the most endearing, heartfelt, and most of all original movies of the year. The leads Kara Hayward and Jared Gilman may have little experience at acting, but it doesn't show as they go through this light, breezy trip set to a retro soundtrack and features almost all of your favorite action actors in scout uniforms. How can this movie not be nominated for Best Picture?