why are wes anderson’s films Like That?

A still from ‘Asteroid City’

Intentionality.

A filmmaker’s foremost demand is to be taken seriously. Out of all artistic media, film is one where the artist gets the most control over every aspect. Writing. Lighting. Acting. Editing. Music. Anything imaginable can be put to film. But it comes at a cost.

In a book, each choice of word can be pointed to as intentional and analysed as such. In a painting, the choice of colour can be read into. But when the same choices are on film, they can be ignored at the whim of the interpreter.

“Maybe the actor improvised.”

“That specific colour of curtains just happened to be in the house they were shooting at.”

“They probably had no other take they could use for this shot.”

Film is an uncontrolled medium. The final product is not just a product of the auteur behind it, but also of a thousand people that work or don’t work on it. Some choices are intentional, some are not. And the audience can’t tell the difference.

Wes Anderson doesn’t like that, because that means people don’t take him seriously. When Wes Anderson makes a film, he has something very specific to say, and he wants to ensure that he is heard correctly.

The rhythm, the symmetry, it’s all there to draw attention to itself. The hypnotising monotony of it all exists to constantly remind you to pay attention. Because everything on film is the auteur’s intention, even when it’s not.

Wes Anderson does not make simple films. His films deal with important subject matter in ordinary ways, but in the eyes of the average viewer, the grave seriousness of his films may get lost within the playful style. There’s humour, but the humour is serious, and it deserves to be treated seriously, but the only way Wes Anderson can have that guaranteed is if he promises to do it in symmetry, in rhythm, in saturated colours and retro aspect ratios.

But if you start watching every film like you watch a Wes Anderson film, and you give every filmmaker’s creative choices, no matter how absurd to you, the due credit that they deserve, maybe you’ll realise that film of all sorts need that kind of attention. Artists of all kinds need to be listened to.

That’s what Wes Anderson is saying. But are you listening?