Possibly my favourite movie, melancholy and hilarious at the same time- though I've never been able to decide is this is the funniest sad film or the saddest funny film. The ending really gets to me.
By the end of world war one, the old European civilization that had existed for over a thousand years, broke down. Six empires entered the war: the French, the German, the Ottoman, the Russian the British, and the Austrian. (One emerged out of it, the American) In five years they had spent lmost all of their accumulated wealth and they all basically fell apart. This movie is set during the transitionl phase when the dying civilization of old Europe was trying to come to grips with the fact that times were changing. The second world war would ultimately destroy and defile everything that this culture stood for. The fictional author that tells the story in "Grand Budapest" is loosely inspired by real world author Stefan Zweig, who wrote among other things, about the collapse of the European culture. Zweig had to leave his home in Vienna to escape the Nazis, and fled to England, then USA and Brazil. He never got over the shame and despair of seeing what his beloved Europe had become, and he ended up taking hos own life in 1942. It is a sad ending for a great author and it is a sad ending for a great culture. This is what Wes Anderson is trying to reflect with the ending of this movie.
So happy to find you watching this movie. My friend invited me to see this with her during a very stressful period and our trip to the theatre to watch this movie was a much needed relief. I will always love this movie.
Wish you woulda started the Wes Anderson journey with Rushmore BUT I’ll take it…but just know this one is VERY unique compared to the rest, this is Wes Anderson on steroids. 👍😅
This is definitely the best reaction I’ve seen to this movie, I’ve watched a few because it’s one of my favorite films, so thank you so much for that my guys!
Wes Anderson is a God - my favorite Director! Most of his films are cast with this core of actors - these are some of the most talented people in the business that want to work with him The Royal Tenenbaums Rushmore Fantastic Mr. Fox Isle of Dogs Moonrise Kingdom Are true works of art ...!
Adrien Brody fired his gun on the level of the hotel where the princes and nobility stay, shown very briefly in an earlier scene. That's why there were so many armed men on that level.
Y'all have the most underrated film selections in the reaction game, my goodness! Wes Anderson is an icon, and while I prefer his earlier more "grounded" work, his later films like this and Moonrise Kingdom, Fantastic Mr. Fox are amazing. And this has some of the most hilariously casual and sudden vulgarity I've seen in a film so elegant 😂
Wes Anderson has a unique visual style, with symmetrical composition, limited color palettes, flat backgrounds, and use of models and miniatures. He uses a lot of the same actors in his movies, like Bill Murray, Willem Dafoe, Tilda Swinton, Owen and Luke Wilson, and Edward Norton. Anderson's movies often feel like they take place in a world of their own. This is especially true of "The Grand Budapest Hotel." Other Wes Anderson movies you might want to react to: Moonrise Kingdom The Royal Tenenbaums Rushmore Isle of Dogs (animated) I would avoid "Asteroid City," which I think was a mess. Willem Dafoe is one of my favorite actors. I loved him in "The Florida Project" and "The Lighthouse." BTW, was that a Wilhelm scream or a Willem scream? Saoirse Ronan is another favorite. She was great in "Brooklyn," "Lady Bird," and "Atonement."
The way this movie coasts along on sheer stylized goofiness only to leave you thinking about all the beautiful, eccentric, one-of-kind people in the world who died for no good reason at the hands of fascist thugs last century.... Masterpiece.
y'all from the Bay? dig your reactions, keep em coming! Waiting on my Godfather 2! A few suggestions for some stuff that you might not have seen that would make for some dope reactions, maybe there are few here that both of you never seen: The Lighthouse The Northman The French Dispatch (same director as this one) The Big Lewbowki (did you already do that?) Oh Brother Where Art Thou? Mean Streets Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia Raging Bull Butch Cassidy and the Sundancekid Stir Crazy
Great reaction. One thing I value most in a movie is the creation of an alternate reality that you can venture into for a couple of hours. Something that exists beyond story or performance, though those elements are valuable as well. You’re probably already aware of it, but it’s the same director that made The Fantastic Mr. Fox. Some of the same style comes through, even though the medium is different.
