The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou: Review By slysnide

Bill Murray hasn't done too many great films lately. Well, this wasn't disappointing like has beens trying to return to their glory days, but was in fact a classic & original tale of a has been oceanographer on a search for the Jaguar Shark which may or may not exist. Oh, and he believes a newcomer to his group may be his supposed long lost son.

This was one of director Wes Anderson's passion projects that he's been trying to make for years. With Scott Rudin & Barry Mendel agreeing finally to produce the film with Wes Anderson's and Noah Baumbach's screenplay, the film was finally on a roll with filming in remote locations for a budget of $50,000,000. Though it only received $24,006,726 in its short run. That can be attributed to its Christmas Day release date in competition with Winter Dramas which are typically Oscar contenders, which this film was not. And it may have been a limited release film as well. However it was greatly enjoyable, and was added to the Criterion Collection. If that's not enough to convince you to see the film despite its horrid box office intake, then continue reading this review, for I loved the movie.

Bill Murray is Steve Zissou, a has been oceanographer whose TV show has become lackluster, and after the death of his partner Esteban du Plantier (Seymour Cassel) by the mysterious Jaguar Shark, Steve swears revenge against it and rounds up his motley crew to hunt & kill it. Though unlike the pure comedy this plot implies, the comedy is much more on the sly from Bill, such as his character isn't openly hilarious like his famous role in "Caddyshack" (1980), but is rather unfazed by anything that happens. From the revelation that he has a possible son who wishes to join his crew to being hijacked by pirates in uncharted waters, nothing will ever surprise Steve. And that's pretty much the types of characters that Bill Murray plays very well. And so that's where the comedy comes from.

Willem Dafoe however is the exact opposite, for as Zissou's German first mate Klaus Damlier he's openly funny in his seriousness and questioning of the newcomer's loyalties. His accent is also hilarious as it was meant to be. And he gets the majority of the comedy out of this character wise, but his constant devotion to Zissou's latest mission despite the horrendous violations of regulations and Laws pertaining to International Waters leaves you in stitches.

Owen Wilson is the newcomer Edward 'Ned' Plimpton whom Steve dubs Kingsley Zissou when he learns at a screening of his latest adventure that he may be his son. Of course he's immediately invited on the voyage to bond with Steve in a suspected test of both loyalty, and genetic skills which Steve believes he must have if Ned were truly his son. Owen plays the role similar to Bill in that nothing fazes him, making this performance not too typical of Owen Wilson whom we're used to seeing play over the top characters.

And Ned's blooming relationship with reporter Jane-Winslett Richardson (Cate Blanchette) proves that, as her devotion to doc*menting Steve's outrageous search for the Jaguar Shark shifts to her devotion to loving Ned, which is bad for Steve who secretly loves her, though haphazardly. Cate's role wasn't too interesting, but was decidedly off genre for her, as her performance is carried by both Bill & Owen. Though her strong british accent also comes across as funny rather than normal.

Jeff Goldblum is Alistair Hennessey, a rival oceanographer who's much more sophisticated and tech savvy than Zissou. He at first laughs off Steve's search, though while in his own search for the pirates who stole his equipment from his marine base he becomes entwined with Steve's search. He's funny, c*cky, though friendly with Steve, and is of course a delightful character. My only regret is that he didn't have more screen time.

Anjelica Huston is Steve's semi-estranged wife Eleanor. She's the brains behind 'Team Zissou' and their WWII vessel 'Belafonte' which has many electrical problems, though also appears to have been recently recommissioned after being mothballed for way too long. Eleanor too had little screen time unfortunately as she refuses to accompany Steve on his new voyage. But Anjelica plays the dissatisfied wife just the same as about all her characters, especially her role in Wes Anderson's other film "The Royal Tennenbaums" (2001) which featured almost all of the same cast members.

Zissou's producer Oseary Drakoulias was played wonderfully by Michael Gambon, as he's enthusiastic, energetic, though genuinely concerned as he sends his bond company stooge Bill Udell (Bud Cort) on the voyage to ensure that the crew stays on budget, as he himself is too lazy to go. He was a delight on screen, though unfortunately didn't receive much screen time. This was an unfortunate problem with these three aforementioned cast members whom were all a grand delight in the film, and their absence is 75% of the reason why I only gave this film 4 stars.

The visuals were also great, but not as colorful as the poster implies, for the yellow submarine sequence isn't until the end of the film. The rest is mostly on the high seas and in the belly of the Belafonte rather than on desert islands, which is also saved for last. Although the high seas aren't nearly as beautiful as what we saw in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" trilogy (2003/2006/2007). The aquatic life itself is done by animation via clay-mation rather than mind blowing CGI which kept the budget low. The trimming of such locations & colors is 20% of the reason why I only gave it 4 stars, while the remaining 5% can be attributed to the meager 119 minute runtime which seemed too short for the movie despite its relatively slow pace, considering that many sequences seem too short and not taken advantage of for their comedic and adventurous aspects.

Overall, from Steve's marine HQ, to Pirate Island and back again, this movie delivered, though unfortunately not enough. If you liked "The Royal Tennenbaums" or these actors, then by all means get out there and see this extremely underrated dramedy/adventure film.