Movie Review: Asteroid City Embodies "charm, humor, beauty and heartbreak"
Moving Pictures Column
by Mo Burford
In Asteroid City, Wes Anderson’s latest film, the audience is treated not only to a pastel dreamscape that is as painstakingly crafted and curated as it is sublime, but also to one of this singular auteur’s best films. One that is equal parts charm, humor, aesthetic beauty and heartbreak.
The film opens immediately to layer upon layer of film-making itself: a black and white TV documentary about the making of the play, “Asteroid City”–that is, the film we are watching–that follows the life of the figures in the production; next we see, in beautiful, bright technicolor, the film version of said play. These layers are shuffled like a deck of cards, flipping back and forth.
Asteroid City, then, becomes a hard film to encapsulate; it’s the story of this famous play (that is, “Asteroid City”), which is about a grieving family that finds itself in said city for a science convention where many other families and characters also descend, during which time events of cosmic significance take place that change both the lives of the characters–and the players of those characters–forever.
These players are an all-star cast full of exceptional performances. Now, all-star casts are a hallmark of Anderson’s oeuvre, however this film is exceptionally stacked, with performances by Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johanson, Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Wright, Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Hope Davis, Liev Schrieber, Tilda Swinton, Matt Dillon Steve Carrell, Adrian Brody… And there are even more cameos to boot! It should be too much and unwieldy, but Anderson manages these performances with a steady hand. To wit, some of these cameos, like the one featuring Margot Robbie, only last one scene but are some of the strongest in the film. It is equally a testament to Anderson’s ability as a director to get such strong performances out of child actors, of which this film features many.
What one is immediately aware of when watching Asteroid City (or really any of Anderson’s films) is his distinctive style of filmmaking: one that is epitomized by his use of highly constructed sets, disciplined camera movements, ornate costumes of highly contrasting colors, dialogue delivered in an often flat, fast manner. That is, you can spot an Anderson movie a mile away. But this is to his credit. How many filmmakers in this day and age could people spot in a few frames? I’d say very few.
I have always loved Anderson’s movies. And while I have favorites and others I’m not so fond of, I have to say this film is both one of my favorites and one Andrson’s best, if not the best.
Asteroid City (2023)
★★★★★
(five stars)
A few other Wes Anderson movies this reviewer would suggest you check out:
Rushmore (1998)
The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
The Life Aquatic (2004)
Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
Asteroid City is now playing at Skylight Theaters in Hood River.
Questions, comments, movie suggestions? Email Mo at movingpicturesccc@gmail.com
For more reviews and to see his up-to-date movie log, follow Mo at Letterboxd
