It’s hard to go into a new Wes Anderson film without expectations — or at least an idea of what you’re in for. Over the years, it seems every new release is met with a mix of love for the continuation of his style or exasperation at more of the same. I fall into the former category. I feel that with each new film, Wes Anderson is trying to get closer to his perfect film — similar to filmmakers I hold dear: Yasujirō Ozu and Éric Rohmer. If you go into any of their films, the similarities are often more present than the differences — but for me, it’s the subtle differences that make them.
In The French Dispatch and Asteroid City, I felt Anderson giving us a glimpse into a larger worldview, taking his quirky style — for better or worse — into bigger ideas than he’s explored in the past. But with his new film, The Phoenician Scheme, it feels like Anderson is back to telling a story that’s more personal. It’s full of what we’ve come to expect — extravagant set design, symmetrical compositions, monotone performances, and a massive ensemble cast — but this one feels smaller in scale. Although there are a lot of cameos and fun side characters, there are really just three main characters: Zsa-Zsa Korda, played by Benicio Del Toro; his daughter Sister Lisle, played by Mia Threapleton; and Bjorn Lund, played by Michael Cera.
The film follows Zsa-Zsa Korda, a very rich and shady businessman, as he tries to get his affairs in order and leave his estate to his estranged daughter in the case of his eventual demise, who is in the process of becoming a nun. What follows is a fairly simple — yet still somehow convoluted (?) — plot, as the trio travels to meet with business partners from around the world to make up a deficit in a deal Zsa-Zsa’s been working on to build infrastructure in Phoenicia, which has been stalled due to a secret government plot to kill the deal.
At the heart of the film is a story about family, legacy, and what it means to find meaning itself. Zsa-Zsa has spent his life finding meaning through wealth; his daughter through religion. But this journey becomes a reminder that maybe real happiness is found in spending time with the people we love — whether they’re family or chosen family. It’s a very simple and at time’s laugh out loud funny film, but there were moments when I found myself getting unexpectedly choked up — scenes that felt like it transcended the film itself. It left me feeling that this might be the most emotional of Anderson’s recent films, reminding me of what I loved about The Life Aquatic, The Royal Tenenbaums, and The Darjeeling Limited.
Today on KIOS at the Movies, host Joshua LaBure sits down with Patrick White, Assistant General Manager of Marketing, and Elijah Hoefer, General Manager of Programming at Film Streams, to discuss the The Phoenician Scheme.
The Phoenician Scheme is now playing at Film Streams.
