thinking about wes anderson
today the weather was sunny as usual; it barely feels like winter but it never does ...we were talking about wes anderson and how we wish he would incorporate more cgi in his work, like in the life aquatic (2004). it's already amazing when bill murray steals a hard-boiled egg from a wrathful monkey, and it's even more amazing for the audience to then enter (through his gullet, with the egg) his body and watch as artfully-crafted white blood cells assemble to tackle the threat. and most amazing of all is that one of the white blood cells has been personified as the bombastic osmosis jones, who is made even more unforgettable by the astute choice to double-cast bill murray in the role in addition to his primary role as steve zissou. what did he mean by this?
the life aquatic (2004), though it used no traditional miniatures in its production, thus to me is a spiritual successor to anderson's previous works, entering the human body and presenting it as a series of intricate miniatures. osmosis jones is flanked by drix, a cold pill who is voiced by owen wilson. challenging as it might be for a live action actor to transition to voice acting for a cgi puppet body, wilson plays this character beautifully. each expression that crosses his face is made more grotesque, each sentiment in his voice is conveyed with largesse that dwarfs their surroundings. how did he do it?
21 january 2024