Wes Anderson's Odyssey: The Grand Budapest Hotel
This review of The Grand Budapest Hotel is spoiler-free!
Wes Anderson is one of the world's most unique filmmakers, and with his film Isle of Dogs coming into theaters near the end of this month, I felt like it was time to finally jump into the magical worlds he creates with his films. If you've ever watched a Wes Anderson film, you would know that he is famous for his stylization and visual flair throughout all of his films. The Grand Budapest Hotel for me is an excellent point to start this deep dive into some of his most famous films, as for me it's the most accessible for a wide variety of audiences. So, enough time spent explaining myself and my choices, let's get into this film!
This film, obviously, focuses on the Grand Budapest which is a popular resort in Europe overseen by the concierge Gustave H. At the start of the film we are introduced to the new lobby boy Zero, who Gustave takes under his wing and begins to train in this ways of being a truly excellent lobby boy. Zero learns right away from his mentor that some of the best clients are elderly women who he is constantly found to be sexual pleasuring in one way or another. When one of his most popular "clients" in this server passes away unexpectedly, he finds himself given a priceless piece of art and a suspect for murder. As you can tell, The Grand Budapest Hotel's story is zany and whacky in all senses of the word. It's super enjoyable and doesn't bother to dive too deep into any serious themes which makes it just that much more fun of an adventure.
For characters, there's really only two that deserve true recognition! The most obvious of which being the flamboyant Monsieur Gustave H., played by Ralph Fiennes. He plays the character with such a lackadaisical whimsy and just pure joy that exudes off the stream. You can feel the excitement he has in playing this enjoyable character and you reflect that same array of happy and spur of the moment emotions. I haven't seen much of Fiennes but this is some great work to accentuate a character that could have fell flat with the wrong delivery. The other major player in this story is the young lobby boy Zero, played by Tony Revolori. He's a gleeful young boy who just wants to learn everything he can about being a lobby boy. Right away he's whisked away on a journey of self-discovery with Gustave H. and learns about growing up and finding love. This results in him making changes to improve his own life and trying to be an adult (going so far as to draw a pencil mustache on his upper lip). This combination of actors and characters is stellar and fits the story perfectly. They're a comedic duo but there's also a great deal of heart between these two that isn't immediately recognizable.
Being a Wes Anderson film, it's almost a necessity to talk about the film style and look of this movie. Having become famous for his visual style, the moment you enter into the Budapest, you're greeted to sharp and consistent cuts between scenes and moments. Anderson films his scenes from almost a sort of box, choosing to stay on one side and show things from the side frequently. This choice to do camera work in a different way has played well in Anderson's films and makes them more enjoyable as a whole. Along with this, he has an excellent ability to utilize color. There's so much power and punch behind the choices he makes in his films and they just make the movies he creates that much better.
As an overall package, The Grand Budapest Hotel is one of those films that you go into expecting something you simply can just relax and watch. I'm glad to say though that this film doesn't just grab you with its comedy and joyfulness, it manages to keep you firmly entrenched in its unwritten heart and kindness. There's a growth of character that takes place behind the scenes that many will not realize that happens to make the film even better than I originally anticipated. Anderson's reputation as a director means anything with his name on it will be unique and a creative approach will be had. This is a movie you can enjoy for everything it has without worrying about missing important themes or serious conflicts. It's a great film for all ages and makes the viewer happier just by watching it.
