10 Things Wes Anderson Puts In EVERY Movie
Quirky families, Shoe-box sets, random violence, binoculars - only Wes of course!
Modern filmmakers are always striving to bring new and original ideas to the industry, whilst also recreating the genius of those who inspired them to go into the field of cinema in the first place. Wes Anderson does both.
He openly admits to being influenced by observant film directors such as Stanley Kubrick, Orson Wells, Roman Polanski, and others, and uses their cinematic intellect to construct his work.
But more importantly, Anderson has ushered in brand new art styles, new filming techniques, and new forms of humour which have made him a modern pioneer in entertainment. His films are moving art and, in fact, are pretty much dubbed a genre unto themselves.
But how is it that Wes Anderson movies have become their own genre? Why is that we see a small clip or even just a freeze-frame of his films, you know instantly it’s directed by him? This list deconstructs his films and all the details, big or small, that have helped shaped the beloved ‘Wes Anderson’ flick. From camera techniques to scripting, let’s see how far his movies have evolved since his debut Bottle Rocket.
10. Frequent Casting Of The Same Actors
Best Example: Bill Murray
Wes Anderson is known to cast the same actors repeatedly. Frequent collaborators include Angelica Huston, The Wilson brothers (Owen, Luke and Andrew), Jason Schwartzman, Stephen Dignan and his very own brother, Eric Chase Anderson.
The repetition of the same actors in similar roles is because the filmmaker seems to be aware of his own phenomenon. He sets out to try something different with each film but admits to noticing a pattern which he can’t seem to escape. According to Anderson, his characters are the fruit of his own subconscious, and he is powerless to control the process.
And it’s not just the cast who are used extensively. Behind the scenes, Robert D. Yeoman has been worked on the cinematography for all of Wes Anderson’s movies (excluding the stop motion pictures), amongst various composers and artists returning again and again for Wes’ latest projects.
The most obvious and recognisable actor of all is Bill Murray. Ever since Rushmore (1998), Murray has managed to land himself a role in all major Wes Anderson flicks and has lent his voice to all the filmmaker's animated works. Maybe he'll play the title role, maybe he'll only be a small cameo but he always features nonetheless. He is also set to appear in Anderson’s latest project The French Dispatch.