The Life Aquatic (bad review)

Wes Anderson has gained a sizeable following over the years.   The success of   movies like Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums  opened Anderson up to a mainstream audience.  His 2004 comedy The Life Aquatic was received well, but just doesn't seem to size up to his other works.   The over use of basic visual elements is overwhelming and the dialogue is a bit dull.

The story follows oceanographer Steve Zissou (Bill Murray) as he attempts to destroy a rare shark that has killed his beloved friend.  He runs into an array of complications on the way and in the end Steve decides to spare the shark’s life.   The problem is that Murray utters few words, and when he does they are often of little importance.   Most of Zissou’s dialogue are nonsensical ramblings. Owen Wilson plays a man from Louisville, Kentucky that claims to be Steve’s son.  Wilson’s ole lacks any real development in the film.  He is fascinated by Steve Zissou, but that is the only thing the audience ever really knows about this character.  His wife Eleanor (Angelica Houston)  is somewhat of a life manager to Zissou.  

The film’s failures reach beyond the boring conversations within it.  The use of repitition is over whelming.  The characters all dress the same, and the scenes all fall into perfect color schemes.   Every setting looks over calculated.  This movie simply has too little dialogue and too much saturated imagery.  A huge failure for Wes Anderson.

Peep Show (good review)

Peep Show

Peep Show is the first sit com starring the UK comedy duo Mitchell and Webb.  The series just wrapped up its 7^th season with two more confirmed.  The show portrays the pair in a typical odd couple setting.  Mark Corrigan (David Mitchell) is an uptight business man and Jeremy Usbourne (Robert Webb) is a hedonistic musician that is unemployed throughout most of the series.  The clever use of POV shots and constant use of the characters inner monologue add a remarkable twist to a classic situation.

This show is relatively fast paced and has few dull moments.  Mark and Jeremy are always finding themselves in awkward situations and leaving them in a brilliantly absurd way.  From awkward dinner conversation to breaking and entering the couple are always getting in over their head as a result of their near constant disputes.  Each season has an  arching narrative that develops a variety of hilarious supporting characters and further evolves the bizarre chemistry that keeps these two men close to each other despite their conspicuous differences. 

Mitchell and Webb have a reputation for being brilliant comedy writers.  Their sketch shows have gained wide appraisal in the UK and a growing cult following in The United States.  Peep show proves the versatility of their work.  This series is surprisingly sharp and vividly foolish. 

The Queen is Dead (medium review)

The Queen is Dead

The third studio release by the English alternative band The Smiths, The Queen is dead, has had a long reputation as being their best record.   Recorded in 1985 during several sporadic recording sessions, the album reached #2 in the UK albums chart and 70 on the Billboard 200 chart.  Johnny Marr and Morrisey wrote the bulk of these compositions in separate pieces with Morrissey adding lyrics to Marr’s musical arrangements.  The two were an absolutely wonderful writing pair, but at times this album can feel less like an album and more like a collection of songs.

This album offers a variety sounds and emotions.  Songs like “The boy with the thorn in his side” and “Cemetery gates” feature the familiar Jangly guitar and upbeat bass rhythms that made the band famous.  Their ability to take simple melodies and craft them into beautifully basic arrangements is brilliant.  Other songs like “The Queen is dead” and “Bigmouth strikes again” utilize a more liberal use of effects, notably delay, that foreshadow later works like “How soon is now” and other songs from their later album Louder than Bombs.  Still other songs like “Vicor in  tutu” and “There is a light that never goes out” seem to stand on their own and add a interesting break from the rest of the albums pace.

The problem is that these songs don't always work well together.  The fact that Marr and Morrisey wrote these songs 2 or 3 at a time is apparent.  The arrangement of tracks seems a bit arbitrary and can be uncomfortable at times.    Every single track on this album is a hit in its own right, but unfortunately this album lacks a unified quality that is arguably necessary to make a release like this worthy of being called a masterpiece.