The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

Movie Name: The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
Year of Release: 2004
Director: Wes Anderson
Starring: Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett, Anjelica Huston, Jeff Goldblum, Willem Dafoe, Michael Gambon, Noah Taylor, Bud Cort, Seu Jorge, Waris Ahluwalia, Seymour Cassel, Matthew Gray Gubler, Robyn Cohen, Isabella Blow
Genre: Comedy, Action
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8
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Synopsis and Review:

Director Wes Anderson followed the well received "The Royal Tenenbaums", with another remarkable feature, very much inspired by the shows (and life) created by Jacques Cousteau. The film focuses on the iconic and celebrated Steve Zissou, who alongside his team, set out to discover the elusive Jaguar Shark, who was quite possibly responsible for the death of his business partner. The team itself is going through a rough patch, since they haven't released a successful documentary in nearly a decade, but Steve believes this new expedition will definitely bring them back the accolades they always had. His team is joined this time around by Ned Plimpton, an airline pilot who believes Steve to be his father, and Jane Winslett-Richardson, a pregnant reporter, who becomes a focus of attention to both Steve and Ned. As Steve and team go through a series of challenges, including rival research teams and even pirates, their quest is unshakable and unstoppable.

One of the most admirable aspects to Wes Anderson films is the fact they're crafted with such attention to detail, that each time one of his films is viewed, there's always another aspect to admire and focus on. "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" is a perfect example of that, where Anderson builds this figure, similar in some ways to Jacques Cousteau, but also someone who is a debonair, charismatic and a bit of a charmer, particularly with the ladies, even if the object of his affection is his stylish and iconic wife. As is customary in his films, this feature is peppered with great humor, stunning production design, impeccable score, and an array of actors who infuse these characters with life and quirks, even if in this case, the characters don't get as fully flushed out as they could possibly go. Nonetheless, it's a film that marries the nostalgic aspect of a world gone by, of somewhat modern day ocean explorers, who go through adventures, led by an iconic team lead, all of this mixed with a sense of humor, warmth, love and wonder. Of all his films, it's quite possibly one of his most ambitious ones in scale, but it never dwarfs the emotional core of what he's trying to state, or for that matter the journey of the characters that exist in this universe. Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett, Anjelica Huston, Jeff Goldblum, Willem Dafoe, Michael Gambon are all terrific, many of whom are of course part of the Anderson troupe (Murray, Wilson, Huston, Goldblum, Dafoe), bringing these characters to life with humor, heart and enough quirks to make them all memorable and not simply sketches. The cinematography from Robert D. Yeoman is beautiful, as is the score from Mark Mothersbaugh and production design from Mark Friedberg. A great film from a uniquely talented director, always worth revisiting.