Asteroid City (2023)

Jun 14

Wes Anderson is searching for something but expects you to find the answer.

Presentation:

The film is beautiful. In typical Wes Anderson fashion, the director returns to form with strong barrel distortion and leans in even more with the evolving 90 degree pans. The color grade has a lovely pale yellow nostalgia and once again utilizes the playwright structure breaking the fourth wall. If you can't appreciate Wes Anderson's style, this won't convert any more fans.

Story:

A once again whimsical story, this time involving aliens and an increasingly innocent yet mature theme now evolving into more existential questions that are only ever presented but not addressed. Similar to The French Dispatch, the film feels even more self indulgent with each film feeling more like an art project. There is less regard for the entertaining the audience instead unapologetically opting to flex style from this undoubtedly gifted artist, but at a certain point Anderson should realize that movies still need more reward than stream of consciousness. There does need to be an evolution of the Anderson format, but it's beginning to feel pretentious.