The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) Review

 

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou follows washed up explorer Steve Zissou, who, with the help of his son Ned, a journalist, and a litany of quirky crew mates, journeys into the ocean in search of the jaguar shark that ate his friend. 

What has always helped Wes Anderson stand out as a filmmaker is his very auteur style of visual shooting that balances quirky characters with loads of heart to craft a simple story into a very emotional think piece. For once though, that heart and emotion feels absent in The Life Aquatic, leaving much of the quirkiness to take center stage in the most ambivalent way imaginable. Usually this wouldn’t really be an issue, but in a movie with little in the way interesting content, characters usually have to be relied on to carry the load and where they lack in depth (while also keeping with the trend of bad dads trying to make amends), we’re left with a film that struggles to find it’s sole (especially with a revelation that the core theme of it all could be for nothing). 

Narratively it draws heavily from the exploits of famed French explorer Jacques Cousteau, even going as far to model Steve’s powder blue button-up and red beanie after him. And though rather boring, with spurts of intensity sprinkled in, a great care was obviously taken to pay respects to Cousteau and the work he did, for without him, a film like this wouldn’t be possible. 

We do also get a lovely cast, starring Matthew Gray Gubler, Seu Jorge, Bud Cort, Michael Gambon, Jeff Goldblum, Anjelica Huston, Willem Dafoe, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett, and Bill Murray. In a performance that felt reminiscent of a walking zombie, Murray is shockingly dry and is helped out none by a drawn out runtime. Smaller performances from Dafoe, Wilson, and Blanchett though, were refreshingly nice and definitely gave the film a bit more pep when it really seemed to drag (which was often). 

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, directed by Wes Anderson, had all of the usual artistic beauty we’ve come to know from Anderson but a drawn out story, lack of emotional depth, and a heavy dose of boring, lackadaisical humor lead the film to uncharacteristically miss the mark. 

5.7/10