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45 COMMENTS

  1. I'm not qualified to say which Wes Anderson film is the best. I can only say which is my favorite… and that's no easy task, considering how much I love "Moonrise Kingdom" and "The Darjeeling Limited"… But I'll say my favorite is "The Life Aquatic," simply because I love that boat.

  5. I will concede that The Darjeeling Limited is not the best Wes Anderson movie, but it is most certainly my favourite one. I first watched it in college and the total communication breakdown and emotional disconnect between the brothers hit me hard because it was a painfully accurate mirror of my relationship with my family at that time. That and I was also struck by the vibrant but sublime colour palette of the whole film, which paid homage to an era when you can't catch an Uber to your hotel and Google Maps your way to the nearest subway station.

  9. It's also my favourite Wes movie. The whole idea of looking for a sense in a senseless death of a close family member, messed up relations and the journey itself feels so relatable. I love this movie so much. The soundtrack itself makes me very emotional.

  10. At this point "Moonrise Kingdom" might be what I consider Anderson's best movie, or most complete (except for the use of models, like in the flooding scenes, which I enjoy but find jarring), but I think I'll always rank "The Life Aquatic" and "The Royal Tenenbaums" as my personal favorites for being sweet, sad, picturesque portraits of people living beyond their golden years. The way he deals with disappointment and the aftermath of ambition, of our various failures to learn and eventual reconciliation with those failures (to say nothing of the ways all of this affects our relationships with those closest to us, or of the way he grounds these stories in specific cultures and worlds) are moving, but more than that, they're human and humane.

  12. I just liked a comment mentioning just about every movie as their favorite! In short, it is difficult for me and I go through phases with one over another. Bottle Rocket was my first Wes Anderson and has a special feel for me, but lately it is Moonrise Kingdom.

  21. My favorite was always the Royal Tenenbaums, though I don't know if it's the best or just has the most relatable character for me, so I always go back to it. I agree with your comment that these movies are so good that rating the "best" is hard to do. I also love the Darjeeling Limited, The Life Aquatic, and The Grand Budapest Hotel. Grand Budapest Hotel is probably the one that struck me the hardest, and may end up at the top of my most watched.

  26. I love "Fantastic Mr Fox" and it saddens me how little it's mentioned. It's stupid, but I first watched when I was young and loved it, then once I really started loving films I rewatched it, and thought damn, this isn't just talking animals. I love the aesthetic, I find it hilarious, the voice acting is great and I can always appreciate good stop-motion.

  33. I knew there were real defenders of this film, but I had yet to meet them. I'm amazed at how many people say this is Anderson's weakest or worst film. I wouldn't say it's either by a long shot. So many things to like about this film. Thanks for the great essay!

    My favorite of Anderson's films, at this moment in time, is The Royal Tenenbaums. I know, if there is a stereotypical Anderson film to like, it's this one. But, I think it may be the best film about dysfunctional families ever made. I may connect with this film more than any other Anderson film. But, I'd say there is a remarkable amount of heart in every Anderson film. Anyone who says he's just style over substance is full of it.

  35. Moonrise kingdom. Moonrise kingdom for the rest of my life. I watched it for the first time during a fight I was having with my best friend turned lover at the time. It really cleared a lot of things up for me. Then, after the movie was over and I had done some serious thinking about my relationship with this person, I stayed up for days to paint him the picture of the end of the movie and drove to his house at 3 am to give it to him. On the back, I taped a letter telling him I was in love with him and how things are only going to get more complicated from here and I'm okay with that if he was. Months later, I moved to another state and me and him started fighting again so I painted that same picture but with like blood in the water and dying trees. I will never show him though because I don't want to take that memory away from him. I'll always let him have moonrise kingdom.

  38. It's funny: Over the years this movie has gone from my least favorite Anderson movie to my favorite. I think it's that I've matured or that I've fallen in love with India or both. But thanks for teasing out and making explicit a few things that I hadn't thought about in this movie. Love these video essays!

  39. 100% agree, Darjeeling Limited is my favorite Wes Anderson flim. I could never quite point out why. It seems to be one of the more "natural" feeling of his films. Much like Bottlerocket, it's one of his films that doesn't feel like it's set in this sort of mystical, dollhouse sort of Anderson world. It's in the real world, or it feels like it is. Don't get me wrong, I do love the weird world of Anderson, but this one especially managed to tug at some emotional strings, I think because it feels significantly relatable. Still can't name a Wes Anderson film I don't love though lol

  40. I have always loved all of his films but for me it has to be a tie between fantastic Mr fox and the grand Budapest. Fantastic Mr Fox came to me at a time in my life when I was very young (many would say I still am). It not only introduced me to him but also planted the seed that would later blossom into a love of filmmaking. The grand Budapest was one of the films that made me fully realize this passion, hobby or whatever it is and was one of the first stories I ever really thought about how it was made and the story being told

  43. I also love the Darjeeling limited the most. It is my favourite Wes Anderson film and it was my first, just as I finished high school. It came at the right time for me. The structure of school was gone and I was embarking on a journey of self-discovery. I felt the film showed a pilgrimage these brothers took and thought it was amazing how they helped each other improve and fix something that was broken within themselves. It is the most human of his films for sure, and it takes me to a happy place. I still feel broken and lost at times, but this film gives me a sense of hope and calmness. It tells me it's alright. I have yet to go on my own pilgrimage though.

  44. I veer back and forth between Rushmore, Tennenbaums, Life Aquatic, Darjeeling Limited, Moonrise Kingdom and Grand Budapest. So yeah, Anderson is a goddamn genius filmmaker.

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