ranking the wes anderson films i've seen
- emma huff
- Apr 4, 2022
- 6 min read
Wes Anderson is one of my favorite directors of all time and yet I somehow still haven't watched all of his movies. I feel like a fake fan, I'm disappointed in myself. My obsession has definitely died down compared to what it was last spring and summer, but I could still go on and on about his directing style and everything that makes his movies literal works of art. So anyways, let's just pretend I'm not missing a few movies and I hope you enjoy my very professional, movie-critic level explanations (in which I alternate between saying "film" and "movie" quite frequently) for why I chose to rank the movies in this order.
8. the life aquatic with steve zissou
Off to a mediocre start with my least favorite Wes Anderson film, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. I wanted to like this movie so badly. I really really did. According to ScreenRant, it "was largely not appreciated on its initial release...[but] has since become a cult classic." In my case, though, it's still not very appreciated. There are some funny Bill Murray moments - like when he says "I know I haven't been at my best this past decade" - and I do like the color palette, but overall it bored me. Everything I've read about it makes me feel like I'm missing something because so many analysis articles say it's a "misunderstood classic" and "one of Wes Anderson's greatest movies." Maybe if I watch it again I'll like it more but I'm not in a rush to do that anytime soon. Or maybe I just can't appreciate true cinema :'(. I guess if you look a little deeper than surface level the meaning is interesting: Zissou's struggle to attain perfection which can never be achieved and then having to come to terms with this, but that still isn't enough to put this movie at a higher spot on my list.
7. the royal tenenbaums
The Royal Tenenbaums is surprisingly not my least favorite film. I feel bad because I'm writing a lot more about all the other movies but I barely have anything to say about this one. I don't hate it but I also don't like it. To put it frankly using professional movie-critic language: it's just a "meh" movie.
6. rushmore
I don't actually have much to say about this movie, I just think it's funny. Rushmore kind of reminds me of an adult version of Matilda with a lot of it being set at Max's school and the teacher Rosemary Cross who's a little bit like Miss Honey. Max's attitude and Blume's habit of behaving like an immature teenager may sometimes get annoying but are overall what makes this one of Wes Anderson's funniest films. There are some darker moments in Rushmore but the movie never goes very in depth with those. I'm not going to say what it is because I don't want to spoil anything if you haven't seen this, but the best "so bad it's funny" joke happens when the three main characters get dinner together. It's seriously such a terrible joke and one of the most awkward scenes ever but that's what makes it great.
5. the french dispatch
I was originally going to put this in my top three but after thinking through what I like and dislike about each movie it has fallen all the way to fifth place. Immediately after watching it I could not stop talking about how much I loved it but now, after comparing it to Wes Anderson's other movies, it really isn't that impressive. I do like that it has multiple stories and each of them is supposed to be an article in the paper but none of them are as engaging as the stories in his other films. It seems like a majority of the focus was on the aesthetics of the movie rather than the actual plot. I do enjoy watching movies that are aesthetically pleasing but that alone isn't enough to make one great.
4. the grand budapest hotel
We're getting to all my favorites now (!!), the first one being The Grand Budapest Hotel. This movie is absolutely beautiful. It has to be Wes Anderson's most visually impressive film. The stills from it are stunning and the combination of live action shots and animation was such a great idea and really just brings everything together. It's been a while since I watched this one so I can't trust myself to say too much about it but I will say that I don't remember thinking it was as funny as some of his other films. I know there were funny parts but right now the only one I can remember standing out to me is when M. Gustave says "The beginning of the end of the end of the beginning has begun." Writing this is making me want to rewatch the movie so badly. Also, one last thing, Saoirse Ronan and Voldemort are in it?? Need I say more? If you haven't already done this, please watch The Grand Budapest Hotel.
3. the darjeeling limited
I’d honestly say that The Darjeeling Limited and The Grand Budapest Hotel are tied for third, but for the sake of ranking them I decided to put The Darjeeling Limited higher up for a few reasons. Before I get into those, let me just say that this movie is so underrated. If my Wes Anderson obsession hadn't been as extreme as it was I might not have ever heard of it. I think one of the big reasons why I like The Darjeeling Limited so much is because it's set in India. I've always wanted to go there with my mom since she was born there (yes, I know it's hard to believe but I am half Indian even though I don't look like it). When I was watching it I felt a little like I was traveling through India with the brothers. I also like it because I've done some of the stuff the brothers did while they were in India which is pretty cool. Some other more general reasons why I like the movie are that the vibrant color palette is beautiful and the story and characters are extremely well developed. Again I can't fully explain what I'm talking about to avoid spoilers but the end is such a *chef's kiss* moment and it really ties everything together.
2. moonrise kingdom
I feel like I'm repeating myself a lot with these top four, but Moonrise Kingdom is so pretty. The color palette is my absolute favorite out of all the Wes Anderson movies I've seen. I love every single part of this movie. It's whimsical and sweet and captures young love in an accurate, not-weird way. This is different from the usual romance story in many ways, a major one being that Sam and Suzy actually feel like real people. They have flaws and are naive and sometimes awkward. They're not written in a way that makes them appear to be perfect like most rom-com protagonists are. This is very high praise coming from me: Moonrise Kingdom is the kind of movie that makes me want to live in it. I would love to run away and bring basically nothing except a record player and a suitcase full of books.
1. fantastic mr. fox
The day another Wes Anderson film beats this one will be the single most shocking day of my life. Now this is my opinion, but also I am entirely correct in saying that Fantastic Mr. Fox is a masterpiece. It's one of my top go-to comfort movies and everything about it is just so cussing fantastic (haha see what i did there). I think the biggest thing that makes Fantastic Mr. Fox incredible is the detail put into it. Stop motion animation was a great choice for this movie. All of the scenes and characters and sets are works of art, the soundtrack is so good, and I love the colors (If you couldn't already tell, I like the color palettes for pretty much every Wes Anderson film). It's the perfect combination of cute and funny with its lovable characters, replacing curse words with "cuss", and nonsensical facts like "beagles love blueberries." Even with all of its lightness, Fantastic Mr. Fox still manages to have some depth to it at the same time. Mr. Fox's son, Ash, struggles with feeling like his dad isn't proud of him and fitting in. Later on in the movie Mrs. Fox reassures him by saying:
"We're all different...but there's something kind of fantastic about that, isn't there?"
An iconic line and very valuable lesson even if it is a little cliché. There's no doubt that Fantastic Mr. Fox is, and will most likely always be, my favorite Wes Anderson film.
click here to see the list on my letterboxd <3
sources
Comments