The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou Review
by Jerry Saravia (faust668 AT aol DOT com)February 9th, 2005
THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVEN ZISSOU (2004)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
Viewed on January 14th, 2004
RATING: Three stars and a half
I can't believe it. Wunderkind Wes Anderson has done it again. "Bottle Rocket" and "Rushmore" were terrifically rich, spicy Wes Anderson comedies. Then came "The Royal Tenenbaums," a far richer tapestry of black humored situations crossed with a character study of dysfunctional families. Those who might have been put off by the latter's dark tone will revel in the truly hysterical "The Life Aquatic With Steven Zissou," which is as delightful as any comedy I've seen in 2004. To describe it would not do it justice - it is something to experience - but I'll do my best.
Bearded Bill Murray plays the 53-year-old Steven Zissou, an oceanographer, filmmaker and something of a pothead. He has his own ship, in dire need of repairs, called the "Belafonte," which comes equipped with a yellow submarine. Zissou has gone on expeditions searching for different fish species and filmed them. He has a full crew, including a topless script girl (Robyn Cohen), the anxious German Klaus (Willem Dafoe), a producer named Oseary Drakoulias (Michael Gambon), a guy named Pele who plays the guitar and sings David Bowie songs in Portuguese, and a pair of dolphin guides whom Zissou thinks are less than intelligent. Zissou is world renown but his documentary films are unpopular (they have titles like "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, Part I"). At a red-carpeted screening, the audience has no emotional reaction to a real on-screen death. The tragic death is none other than Zissou's French buddy, Esteban du Plantier (Seymour Cassel), who is eaten by a Jaguar Shark! So Zissou's mission is to drag his crew through dangerous waters, confront the shark, kill it and film it as part of his next documentary. But this is no ordinary revenge story.
Along for the ride is a pregnant reporter, Jane Winslet-Richardson (Cate Blanchett), who is eager to interview Zissou for a cover story. She is easily intimidated by Zissou and even cries at his dismissal of his own achievements and of her lack of reporting skills. Also on board is Zissou's allegedly illegitimate son, Ned Plimpton (Owen Wilson), who is an air pilot for Air Kentucky. Ned continuously reminds Zissou that he had written letters to his fan club since he was a kid - is this Ned just an obsessed fan or is he really his son? Zissou is so taken with Ned that he makes him part of the crew, despite the objections of Klaus who sees Zissou as some sort of father figure. Oh, and I shouldn't leave out Eleanor, Zissou's wife (Anjelica Huston), who feels like she doesn't belong to anything except the house she lives on in a private island. There is also cult favorite Bud Cort as the geeky bond stooge.
I am not sure how to describe the effect of "The Life Aquatic" because its charms are so subtle and so minute that it will take more than patience to sit through it. Wes Anderson's films are an acquired taste - either you go with the flow or you'll be submerged in prototypically strange waters. I get his work and am totally attuned to it. His low-key humor and lower-keyed jokes and sight gags are more illuminating than half the Hollywood comedies that need to spell everything out. In the world of this movie, we see pastel-colored fish, angry Filipino pirates, a semi-gay Jeff Goldblum as a rival oceanographer who has an espresso machine, a sleeping vessel attached to the ship where all oceanic wildlife can be seen and admired, glowing jellyfish that wash up on the shore, and so on. Like I said, either you find this funny in terms of how it is setup and delivered, or you don't.
Bill Murray is pitch-perfect as Steve Zissou, accentuating the character's body language and ridiculous attire so well that you forget how absurd it really is. He is often seen wearing a red wool cap and his light blue work clothes, as is most of his crew. Murray brings his dialogue alive with his deadpan comic timing - my favorite scene, among many, is when he walks to every room in his ship while arguing with Ned over his love for Jane, the reporter, who of course has a thing for Ned. What is wonderful about this scene is that the ship looks like a set with the frontal walls cut off, and to hear Murray saying lines like, "Go to bed, you sons of bitches," is to see the extent of the absurdity of the material. What Murray also conveys is Steve Zissou's tiredness - he is tired of his long, waning career and wants to feel a smidgeon of affection again. Ned may be his own salvation. It is further proof that Bill Murray is one of our most underrated actors - check out his scene in the hot air balloon with Cate Blanchett and you'll see what I mean.
Owen Wilson can typically annoy me but his depiction of Ned is truly magnificent. I felt something for Wilson because he shows his hurt and pain for being neglected without making it too obvious - more often, it is reflected in his nearly stoic line readings. And when Steve Zissou fears he is losing him, we feel the genuine pathos between the two. Ned simply wants to be accepted, and wants an admission of his supposed father's guilt over being unacknowledged. All I can say is Wilson does his best work ever - again, the line readings do him justice and he shares solid, magical screen time with Murray.
Cate Blanchett is somewhat wasted as Jane, though she seems to perk up whenever she's on screen with Murray. Willem Dafoe is a bit of a disappointment, if only because I wish there was more of him. Same with the terminally and criminally short appearance by Seymour Cassel, an actor who is worthy of so much more in a Wes Anderson flick.
"The Life Aquatic" is not as great as "Royal Tenenbaums" but how could it be? It is always uniquely funny, charming to the nth degree and full of pathos. There is emotion in there, not just on the surface. Think of Wes Anderson as our latter-day Hal Ashby - exploring odd ennui with black humor and poignancy. This is something to rejoice about in American cinema, not something to turn away from.
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