A Genre Description of Wes Anderson Films

Metaphor Analysis: A Genre Description of Wes Anderson Films

by Logan Stallings Project Description: In this project, I analyzed three of Wes Anderson’s films, ​Fantastic Mr. Fox, Moonrise Kingdom,​ and ​The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. ​Form my analysis of these films, I make the argument that Wes Anderson films carve out a genre for themselves rather than conforming to the pre-made genres that mainstream film typically falls into.

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A Genre Description of Wes Anderson Films Introduction Wes Anderson, a graduate of The University of Texas at Austin, is a well-known auteur filmmaker. Anderson’s films are easily identifiable by their content and cinematography, but, delving further, we see Anderson’s films share more similarities than simply the meticulously created settings and color pallets. Through the use of a shared narrative style and common elements such as outward appearance, family content, and setting, Anderson’s films are a cohesive genre all their own, explicit to Anderson-esque cinematic and narrative style. I will be arguing that these exemplified elements found in, ​Fantastic Mr. Fox, Moonrise Kingdom,​ and The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou​ shape the Anderson-esque genre of film. The rhetorical method of investigation that I will be using to find the commonalities within the artifacts will be a generic description. Looking at the Wes Anderson films I have selected, I will be investigating whether “a genre exists among these artifacts?” and “If so, what… the characteristics” that genre might be (Foss). I will be arguing that Anderson’s films are a genre all their own that Anderson created to continue his success as an auteur.

Presentation and Analysis of Artifact(s) The narrative content of Wes Anderson films does differ from movie to movie in the form of script and characters, but the common thread of family and the unique illustration of the child strongly motivates each film. It is uncommon if not impossible to find a Wes Anderson film, or even short film, that lacks children. At least one child is depicted in every Wes Anderson film as a vital character to the plot and overall narrative. Even more of a specific niche for the children in Wes Anderson films is the recurring theme in which Anderson portrays the children as maturely rational and intelligent people, just like miniaturized adults. For example, in 2012’s Moonrise Kingdom​, the two central characters, children Suzy and Sam, are portrayed merely as small adults. They have rational reasons behind writing letters to one another and running away together, and they are successful in their short escape until they are recaptured by their respective guardians. Suzy and Sam even go so far as committing to a marriage ceremony at the age of twelve, although it is not legally binding for the purpose of the film’s narrative. Backtracking a few years, Wes Anderson’s ​Fantastic Mr. Fox​ hit theaters in 2009, following the story of a family of claymation foxes, one of which is the equivalent of a young boy. The young fox, Ash, adopts his father’s mature yet dangerous mentality and attempts to lead a life of crime, stealing geese and chickens from neighboring farms. Although Ash is not successful in this venture, he does behave maturely and soundly for a child’s equivalent, even recognizing his own social limitations and that he’s socially “just different, apparently” (​Fantastic Mr. Fox​). Going back even further into Wes Anderson’s filmography, ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou​ from 2004 also exhibits an important and mature child, central to the movie's plot. In ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou​, Ned Plimpton is shown as a young boy with an adult mentality and an interest in

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aquatic life and its exploration. As a child, Ned discovers a new species of newt and names it after his estranged father, Zissou. Later, Ned is shown as fully grown and becomes even more of a central character, but references to his childhood show him to have been very mature, even in the way he had to cope with his mother’s cancer.

Throughout ​Fantastic Mr. Fox, Moonrise Kingdom,​ and ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou​, there is a strong narrative of family. Each film depicts a certain kind of family from twelve-year-olds in love to claymation foxes on the run from the law to a father and estranged son, recently reunited. Every film made by Wes Anderson, including these three, gives a strong feeling of familial narrative, and although the plot differs, each film goes through the family conflict and, later, the resolution. In ​Fantastic Mr. Fox​, Mr. Fox and his son, Ash, don’t see eye to eye. Mr. Fox doesn’t understand why his son behaves and dresses the way he does, and while Ash’s relationship with his mother is solid, his relationship with his father is strained to say the least. Ash wants to be a burglar and an athlete like his father, and it is only at the end of the film that Ash is accepted for who he is by both himself and by his father. Similarly, ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou ​depicts a father and estranged son. The son, Ned Plimpton is depicted both as a child and as a man, and as a man, he is reunited with his father. Ned’s father seems to accept him into the family and crew of the Belafonte, the ocean exploring ship, but insists on Ned’s changing his name and staying scripted in the film documentary shots. This conflict of interests is resolved when Zissou and Ned are put in a life-threatening situation that results in Ned’s death and consequential regret and acceptance on the part of his father. The crew is also depicted as a sturdy family that, through trial and tribulation, grows in size and empathy for one another, also strengthened by Ned’s lasting impact and memory. Lastly, the twelve-year-olds from ​Moonrise Kingdom c​ reate their own family when they enter into a non-binding marriage. The orphaned Sam, having spent a good part of his life in the rocky foster system, tries to forge his own family, while Suzy, privileged but misunderstood by her parents does the same.

In addition to the narrative themes of Wes Anderson films, these three movies also share commonalities of cinematic execution through meticulously chosen and fabricated colored scenes and settings as well as the film’s time periods that reflect a sort of golden-lit nostalgia for a past time. These films I’m analyzing are all iconic for their cinematic execution. The unique color pallets that are used are constant throughout each film. These colors are exemplified through the costumes, settings, and artifacts depicted on screen. For example, ​Moonrise Kingdom cinematically uses the colors of a brickish red, a light ochre yellow, a neutral khaki tone, and a ‘60s sky blue throughout almost every single shot. These colors add to the feel of the film as a retro-campy-adventure set in the ‘60s. The cinematography of ​Fantastic Mr. Fox​ utilizes a brick red, a rich sky blue, a couple shades of burnt orange, and a marigold yellow, successfully evoking the feeling of a woodsy foxhole that stands apart from our current era. ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou​, meanwhile, incorporates the colors of a dusty light blue, a deep ocean blue, an

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almost orange tinted red, and mustard yellow into every shot, with the occasional sprinkling of bubblegum pink. All of the colors that Anderson chooses to give his films a pastel sort of nostalgic feeling. By incorporating these colors into the setting of an oceanographic explorer ship, the film reads agelessly and the artifacts of the ocean exploration vessel seem nostalgic.

Anderson even based ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou​ off of a childhood idol, “Jacques-Yves Cousteau, the popular oceanographer, and adventurer,” adding to the real-life golden-lit nostalgia, as the ocean explorer was well known for the ‘60s and ‘70s (Khatchatourian). The colors and the settings appear as they would in memory with rich saturation, and meticulously symmetrical and balanced pallets, where they might actually be more muted and plain in real life. These expertly chosen color themes set Wes Anderson's work apart from average comedies, adventures, and dramas.

Wes Anderson’s use of time period is also very characteristic of his films. Anderson has a love for nostalgia, and he displays it on screen masterfully. ​Moonrise Kingdom,​ a more recent film, is set explicitly in 1965. ​Fantastic Mr. Fox​ is set in an ambiguous time period, but is clearly set in the past due to the lack of current technology, and while it holds a kind of timelessness, the film also holds a specific nostalgia for the golden age of supermarkets like those shown on screen in the animation, likely taking place between 1950 and 1980. ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou​, although not explicitly dated in its time period also reads as very nostalgic with no reference to the common era of iPhones or wifi. Also, based on the technology exhibited, the film reads very 1970s. This element of timeless nostalgia allows for a constant audience. Anderson creates films without expiration dates. He creates films with a vintage renaissance, but without a time period that is too specific or realistic with dreamy colors props and characters that transcend decades.

For example, ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou t​ akes place on the open water for the most part, and the ship, the Belafonte, shows no real dates or current technology. Everything appears ageless. The same can be said for ​Fantastic Mr. Fox, ​as it is a claymation cartoon following the lives of animals that have little to no technology, and especially no current tech like iPhones or laptops, but they seem not to need it, as they are in an alternate kind of world where animals walk and talk. Although ​Moonrise Kingdom ​is set in 1965, there is still a timeless manner about it. The setting and time period seem almost surreal. Aided by the colors and uncharacteristic actions of children, the film transcends the year 1957, especially with the narration of the fisherman who starts the story in a more current yet ambiguous time.

In addition to the color pallets and the nostalgic and sometimes ambiguous time periods, Wes Anderson also calls upon the aid of a select cast of actors. Actors like Owen Wilson, Bill Murray, and Jason Schwartzman appear in almost every full-length film Anderson’s created.

They also often appear in short films under Anderson’s direction, and although the actors never play the same character twice, there is a certain generic cohesion that comes with a recurring cast of actors. Owen Wilson played Ned in ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. H ​ e also voiced a part

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in ​Fantastic Mr. Fox​ and has appeared in almost every other Wes Anderson film, including Anderson’s first full-length film, ​Bottle Rocket.​ Bill Murray is also an actor that Anderson keeps on call. He played the role of Zissou in ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. H ​ e also voiced a character in ​Fantastic Mr. Fox ​and Suzy’s father in ​Moonrise Kingdom.

Organizing Principles of Genre Wes Anderson has made a name for himself as a filmmaker and a director through his unmistakable cinematic style. In the nine complete films Anderson has brought to life, his elements of cinematic style and narrative are exemplified, marking them as Anderson-esque.

Each of these three films that I’m analyzing, created by Wes Anderson, caters to a different target audience and age group. While ​Fantastic Mr. Fox​ is PG and a children’s film, ​Moonrise Kingdom​ is aimed at the slightly older crowd of the PG-13 watchers, and ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou​ is R and caters to adults. While ​Moonrise Kingdom​ is called a comedy, a romance, and a drama, ​Fantastic Mr. Fox​ has been called a family film, an animation, an adventure film, and crime fiction. On top of this, ​The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou​ was assigned the genres comedy, adventure, and drama. The blurring of assigned genres in the cinema also aids the idea that these movies are all under the same blanket of their own genre. The fact that these films, along with all Wes Anderson creations, do not fit snugly into one single movie genre supports my claim that they instead fit into a genre all their own. These films, all creations of Wes Anderson share the commonality of genre. They all hold similar narratives, particular color pallets, and settings of nostalgia. These movies all incorporate multiple genres within the film categories, and they really only differ in age groups of target audiences, although a fan of Wes Anderson is likely to enjoy both Fantastic Mr. Fox and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. So, although these films hold seemingly separate narratives and are often assigned a conglomerate of film genres such as comedy, adventure, romance, and drama, they are all Anderson-esque in nature. Anderson-esque is an identity Wes Anderson created for himself. He did what he liked, pulling from personal nostalgia and connection to family, and made it into something new yet ambiguously niche. A genre of this kind of cinematic creation is different from the mainstream genres, and although mainstream genres like comedy or romance are thrust upon these Anderson-esque films, that is not all these films are. These films fit into a genre of Anderson-esque cinematic mastery, encompassing the visual, the conceptual and the narrative.

Wes Anderson is successful in his creation of a new genre whether purposefully blazing the trail or not. Finding what was successful and attracted a specific kind of film connoisseur, Anderson evolved his style of filmmaking until it was attuned to all the aspects explained here.

Conclusion Wes Anderson is a trailblazer for the obscure and nostalgic. Every one of Anderson’s films and even short films exhibit a longing for a time before such technological advances like the iPhone or the internet. Wes Anderson is an auteur filmmaker who has not only a signature style but a

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signature form of film narrative as well. It is because of this that his films can be categorized not simply as adventure or comedy or drama, but rather, by their form of narrative. The narrative form that Wes Anderson calls upon for all his films is one of precise symmetry, constant color choices, family orientation, and unique storylines often encompassing children. The films created

by Wes Anderson do not fit solely into one genre or another that is commonly accepted for marketing purposes, but instead, forges its own genre of auteur-esque cinema that follows Anderson’s path. In the bigger sense of cinema, Anderson showed that it was possible for an auteur to not conform to the genres of the marketable world. He incorporated what he enjoyed and what he found to be successful, melding it all together into what we can call an Anderson-esque cinema.

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Works Cited Fantastic Mr. Fox​. Dir. Wes Anderson. Perf. George Clooney, Bill Murray, and Maryl Streep.

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, 2009. DVD. Khatchatourian, Maane. "Wes Anderson: 12 Fun Facts About His Movies." ​Variety.​ Variety, 06 Mar. 2014. Web. 28 Feb. 2017. <http://variety.com/2014/film/news/12-fun-facts-about-wes-anderson-movies-1201127189/ >.

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou​. Dir. Wes Anderson. Perf. Bill Murray and Owen Wilson.

Buena Vista Pictures, 2004. DVD. Moonrise Kingdom​. Dir. Wes Anderson. Perf. Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Kara Hayward, Bruce Willis, Jared Gilman. Universal, 2012. DVD.