Wes Anderson: Beauty in Stills

As those of you who know me know, Wes Anderson is absolutely my favorite director by far.  I watch his movies literally on repeat, as for me its a certain visual extravaganza.  In each of Anderson’s movies, I’ve found that you can press pause at any time and there it is: a gorgeous array of vintage colors and exquisite composition.  Each still is a work of art.  Take a gander at some of my favorites from my favorite, The Royal Tenenbaums…

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

Tid Bits about Wes Anderson’s movies:

Wes Anderson is known for making independent-type stylistic films which mix poignancy and dry humor. Examples of his humor includes malapropism and understatement. In his Mastercard commercial, Anderson states his films, “point out the beauty in flaws and vice versa.” Anderson’s films, visually, often make use of close-ups, quick pans, and slow motion shots. He often uses folk and early rock as the background-music in scenes. His often damaged characters are viewed in a compassionate light. The depiction of escapism and companionship through chemicals seems to be one of his trademarks also. In each of his films, one or more of the main characters smokes cigarettes or marijuana, excessively drinks, takes pills, etc. To accompany the cigarettes in his films he also features zippo lighters prominently; from Dignan lighting firecrackers to Bill Murray in Rushmore. Additionally, his films often feature a heavy-smoking female character. A recurring character in Anderson’s films is a respected middle aged male who is essentially a fraud. All of Anderson’s films, with the exception of The Darjeeling Limited, end with slow motion sequences – although The Darjeeling Limited’s third to last shot is in slow motion. Also, with the exception of the independently financed Bottle Rocket, his films employ a similar visual style, primarily through the use of vivid pastel colors. He is known for deliberate, methodical cinematography, using 90 degree camera angles, parallel and perpendicular arrangement of forms, and frequent use of symmetry. All of Anderson’s films utilize the font Futura Bold in either the opening credits, title sequences or closing credits and is also displayed in other printed materials used throughout his films. Each film also uses Futura Bold to display the main closing credits in a particular format where the first name is displayed in a title case and the last name is displayed in all caps. Furthermore, every Wes Anderson movie contains a shot of one or more characters under water.