Wes Anderson

First Trailer for Wes Anderson’s MOONRISE KINGDOM

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: January 12th, 2012 at 11:54 am

The first trailer for Wes Anderson‘s Moonrise Kingdom has gone online and the film looks unmistakably Wes Anderson.  It goes right up to the line of a parody, but it looks like the “Bad Dads” subtext has finally washed away.  Instead, the story centers on a young boy and girl who decide to run away together and the madness of the ensuing search.  There looks to be more quirks than you can shake a branch-with-nails-sticking-out-of-it at, but Anderson’s always added enough depth and shading to his characters to make those quirks work.  If you hate Anderson’s work, there’s no way this is going to turn you around; for everyone else, it looks like he’s back in fine form with a seriously funny movie.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  The film stars Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, Jason Schwartzman, Jared Gilman, and Kara Hayward.  Moonrise Kingdom opens May 25th.

Composer Alexandre Desplat Talks EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE, HARRY POTTER, TWILIGHT, Wes Anderson and MOONRISE KINGDOM, and More

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: January 10th, 2012 at 11:46 am

Over the last few years, composer Alexandre Desplat has gone from genre to genre and consistently delivered fantastic scores.  Here’s a few that he’s done since 2009: Fantastic Mr. Fox, A Prophet, The King’s Speech, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 and Part 2, The Ghost Writer, The Ides of March, Carnage, and, most recently, director Stephen Daldry’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.  With his ever expanding resume and the fact that he records rather quickly for a composer, he’s rapidly become one of the biggest composers in Hollywood. As a big fan of his work, it’s great to see.

The other day I got to sit down with Desplat for an extended interview.  During our wide ranging conversation, we talked about what the past few years have been like, his writing process, what it’s like to work with some of the biggest directors in the world, how he picks his projects, his favorite scores that he didn’t write, and how he got involved in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (which he did in three weeks!).  In addition, we talked about his work on the final two Harry Potter films, Twilight: New Moon, and Wes Anderson‘s Moonrise Kingdom, which he finished last month.  Hit the jump for more.

New Set Photos for Wes Anderson’s MOONRISE KINGDOM; Harvey Keitel Confirmed to Join Cast

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: June 7th, 2011 at 10:14 am

Wes Anderson may have gotten has filmography back on track with the charming Fantastic Mr. Fox but he’ll be headed back to live-action for his next feature, Moonrise Kingdom.  The film already has an impressive cast that includes Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, Jason Schwartzman, and now, according to The Film Stage, Harvey Keitel.  The story “follows a young boy and girl (Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward) falling in love. When they are moved to run away together, various factions of the town mobilize to search for them and the town is turned upside down – which might not be such a bad thing.”

Some set photos from the film have leaked online and one of them shows Norton as a scout leader and another has Murray out of costume but being awesome (which is innate to Bill Murray).  Due to the cast and the story, Focus Features may give Moonrise Kingdom a summer 2012 rather than Anderson’s typical awards season bow.

Focus Features Acquires Worldwide Rights to Wes Anderson’s MOONRISE KINGDOM

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: May 2nd, 2011 at 6:24 pm

The worldwide rights to Wes Anderson’s next film have been acquired by Focus Features. Moonrise Kingdom, co-written (with Roman Coppola) and directed by Anderson, stars Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton and Jason Schwartzman. The film takes place in the 1960’s on an island off the coast of New England and “follows a young boy and girl falling in love. When they are moved to run away together, various factions of the town mobilize to search for them and the town is turned upside down – which might not be such a bad thing.”

Willis is set to play the town sheriff, Norton is a camp leader, and Murray and McDormand will take on the roles of the young girl’s parents. The kids will be played by newcomers Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward. Filming has already begun and Focus Features International is poised to begin international sales at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Hit the jump to read the full press release.

THE DARJEELING LIMITED Criterion Blu-ray Review

by Andre Dellamorte    Posted: November 14th, 2010 at 4:55 pm

It seems the Criterion Collection will not rest until every Wes Anderson film is under their banner, and with their release of The Darjeeling Limited, they are one title away from having all of his films in their collection. Few modern filmmakers seem to have pursued this goal, and few modern filmmakers seem as deserving. And yet The Darjeeling Limited strikes as a transitional work, a filmmaker trying to re-find his voice after having gone through a cycle of films that worked through the main concerns of a filmmaker. The film stars Adrien Brody, Owen Wilson and co-screenwriter Jason Schwartzman as three brothers on a spiritual quest in India to find themselves (and their mother) after their father has passed away. My review of The Darjeeling Limited on Blu-ray after the jump.

Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, and Tilda Swinton in Talks to Star in Wes Anderson’s MOON RISE KINGDOM

by Bill Graham    Posted: November 10th, 2010 at 1:46 pm

Some directors don’t even need to chum the waters to attract the big sharks. Filmmaker Wes Anderson is setting up his next picture, Moon Rise Kingdom, and rumors are already in full swing about the A-list talent circling the picture, which is a period piece set in the 1960s. According to Deadline, Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, and Tilda Swinton are in talks to appear in the film, which was co-written by Anderson and Roman Coppola (The Darjeeling Limited). Producer Scott Rudin (Fantastic Mr. Fox) will join Anderson again with a target start of next spring. Hit the jump for a brief, slightly-spoilerish synopsis, more on the potential financier, and which roles these actors might play.

Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach Producing Peter Bogdanovich’s SQUIRREL TO THE NUTS

by Ramses Flores    Posted: October 29th, 2010 at 8:56 pm

It has now been almost ten years since we last saw a Peter Bogdanovich film in theaters.  The critic-cum-director, who is probably best known for his work during the 70s (The Last Picture Show, What’s Up, Doc?), has spent the last couple of years directing TV movies, but it looks like that will change soon.  During a recent interview, Bogdanovich broke the news that he is now working on a few projects.  First up, he announced that he is working on a screwball comedy currently titled Squirrel to the Nuts.  The film will be produced by Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach (The Fantastic Mr. Fox), and will tell the story of “an escort, a theatre director and a private detective.”  Hit the jump to continue reading about what other projects Bogdanovich is working on.

Wes Anderson to Shoot New Film Next Spring

by Ramses Flores    Posted: September 29th, 2010 at 7:36 pm

Director Wes Anderson has begun pre-production on his newest film with plans to begin shooting next spring.  Production Weekly announced the news earlier this morning via their twitter feed, but we sadly don’t have that many details about the project for right now.  We don’t know what the title, the plot, or who will be starring.  However, The Playlist did some digging and found out that Anderson is looking to cast a boy and a girl — each twelve years old — for the lead roles.  The site also speculates that the film in question is not the project that he and Noah Baumbach were talking about doing together earlier this year.

I’m sure we will find out more details in the coming months. Until then, it’s nice to know that the talented auteur is working on something new so soon, following last year’s excellent Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Criterion Announces October DVD/Blu-ray Releases; Includes THE DARJEELING LIMITED, THE MAGICIAN, PATHS OF GLORY, THE DARJEELING LIMITED, HOUSE and SEVEN SAMURAI

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: July 16th, 2010 at 11:36 am

Criterion has announced their October releases and they’ve lined up some great titles including Wes Anderson’s The Darjeeling Limited, Ingmar Bergman’s The Magician, Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai, Stanley Kubrick’s Paths of Glory, and Nobuhiko Obayashi’s 1977 film House.  Criterion has provided us with high resolution front and back cover art as well as details on each release.  Hit the jump to take a look.  All are being released on DVD and Blu-ray:

FANTASTIC MR. FOX Blu-ray Review

by Andre Dellamorte    Posted: April 6th, 2010 at 1:41 pm

It’s fair to say that Wes Anderson was in a rut. Since the start of his career, Anderson has been working through relationships of men to older father figures, with this concern devolving his live-action films in to something resembling self-parody. Thankfully, with Fantastic Mr. Fox, stop motion animation gives Anderson a new place to explore these concerns, and the animation gives new life to his ideas, while also giving emphasis to other aspects of the story. Mr. Fox (George Clooney) gets his wife Mrs. Fox (Meryl Streep) pregnant, and she asks him to promise not to steal any more so they can raise their son (Jason Schwartzman). Cut to two years later and Fox has grown restless and decides to take on an empire. My review of the Blu-ray of Fantastic Mr. Fox after the jump.

Noah Baumbach and Wes Anderson Teaming Up for a 3rd Project Together

by CJ Simonson    Posted: March 5th, 2010 at 1:56 pm

Noah Baumbach and Wes Anderson are collaborating once again on a new untitled project. This would be the 3^rd effort the two directors have joined in on, with Baumbach co-writing both The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou and Fantastic Mr. Fox with Anderson.  In an interview Baumbach did with The Playlist, he hinted at the duo’s new project claiming that the film has been in development for years, prior to their first film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Baumbach was of course very sly in the interview, not giving away very many important details but saying:

“Wes and I do have another… I dunno if you’d call it a partly written script – but it’s a partly written story, ideas and scenes that we have been talking about for a long time”

Hit the jump for details on what both Baumbach and Anderson have said about the film.

Wes Anderson Gets Animated to Accept National Board of Review Award

by Keith Demko    Posted: January 13th, 2010 at 3:31 pm

Just how happy was Wes Anderson to receive a Special Filmmaking Achievement award from the National Board of Review for Fantastic Mr. Fox? Enough that he showed up to accept the award in stop-motion form and in character, and we’ve got the video to prove it.

Though Anderson’s movie wasn’t among the board’s Top 10 for 2009 – well actually 11, since the “best film,” Up in the Air, gets its own category – the Special Achievement Award is nothing to sneeze at, and in my opinion it’s well deserved. With, of course, the help of many skilled animators, Anderson brought the eye for intricately crafted sets that made The Royal Tenenbaums such a joy to watch into the animated world, and with the help of Noah Baumbach transformed Roald Dahl’s classic tale into a witty little film for kids and adults alike.

Hit the jump to check out the video.

San Francisco Film Critics Circle Helps THE HURT LOCKER Continue Its Winning Streak

by Ramses Flores    Posted: December 15th, 2009 at 9:54 am

Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker won best picture and best director again today at the San Francisco Film Critics Circle (SFFCC) awards. The film has already been awarded with both honors by critics in New York, Los Angeles, and Boston.  Meanwhile, the Southeastern Film Critics Association did not give the film best picture, but did award best director to Bigelow.  I really hope that these are all signs that Bigelow will be the first female to win best director come Oscar time.

Other SFFCC winners included Colin Firth for best actor in A Single Man, Meryl Streep for best actress in Julie & Julia, Mo’Nique for best supporting actress in Precious, Christian McKay pulling a surprise win for best supporting actor in Me and Orson Welles, and Quentin Tarantino winning best original screenplay for Inglourious Basterds while Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach  received the award for best adapted screenplay for Fantastic Mr. Fox.

The full list of winners are after the jump.

Wes Anderson Interview FANTASTIC MR. FOX

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: November 27th, 2009 at 2:41 pm

I absolutely loved director Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr. Fox.  The film is his first foray into stop-motion animation and it’s like he brought the genre to him rather than attempting to adapt to the genre.  Trust me; if you’re a fan of his previous work like Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, you’re going to love this movie.

As most of you know, Fantastic Mr. Fox is based on the best-selling children’s book by Roald Dahl (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach) and it features the voices of George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Wally Wolodarsky, Eric Anderson, Michael Gambon, Willem Dafoe, and Owen Wilson.  But unlike some animated movies that cast famous actors to help sell tickets, everyone who provides a voice is perfect in this film.  Again, this is a great movie that you should check out this weekend.

To promote the film, I recently participated in a group interview with the talented filmmaker.  We talked about how the project came together, stop motion animation, voice casting, future projects, and a lot more.  It’s a great conversation worth checking out.  As always, you can either read or listen to it after the jump:

FANTASTIC MR. FOX Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: November 25th, 2009 at 4:21 pm

Fantastic Mr. Fox feels like the film that director Wes Anderson has been trying to make ever since his first feature Bottle Rocket.  Anderson’s films have always had the tone of a classic book for young adults.  But what was once a stylish affectation eventually mutated into artistic lethargy.  2007′s The Darjeerling Limited showed that Anderson was now using his style as a crutch instead of a means to effectively tell a story.  But with Fantastic Mr. Fox, based on the classic 1970 Roald Dahl book, Anderson turns what had become his greatest weakness into his greatest strength and makes Fantastic Mr. Fox one of the best films of the year.

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