CHICAGO – Excelsior! Comic book legend Stan Lee’s famous exclamation puts a fine point on the third and final play of Mark Pracht’s FOUR COLOR TRILOGY, “The House of Ideas,” presented by and staged at City Lit Theater in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. For tickets/details, click HOUSE OF IDEAS.
Film Review: ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’ is Built by Wes Anderson
CHICAGO – The distinct and strangely alluring style of director Wes Anderson is on opulent display in “The Grand Budapest Hotel.” In what is an eccentric, European style fairy tale, Anderson creates a legend that is forged in his signature, along with the performances of a brilliant cast.
Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
What separates Anderson’s universe from other movie magic is in that wink-at-the-camera seriousness that he filters his characters through, that yields both a comic and quirky effect. The story of an unusual luxury hotel, run by a super-efficient concierge, flirts with the absurd and surreal passions that characterize Wes Anderson and his particular obsessions. One of the great accomplishments of a filmmaker, over a number of movies, is to place ownership on their own universe. The Wes Anderson universe vividly thrives under his masterful composition, whether seeing his point of view for the first time or throughout his short but memorable career.
The story of the Grand Budapest Hotel is told in a flashback through “The Author” (Tom Wilkerson), as related from through his book that tells the story. His younger self (Jude Law) first encounters the hotel near the end of its life, rundown and on its last legs. The Author also meets the odd owner, named Zero (F. Murray Abraham), who relates the pre-World War II saga of the unique destination.
The pinnacle of the hotel was in the 1930s. The mountaintop location of the Grand Budapest belies its lavish experience, overseen by the effective concierge, Mr. Gustave (Ralph Fiennes). He takes on a young protege, the younger Zero (Tony Revolori), and together they bond over the care of the guests and the happenstances of life before the War changes everything.
Heckels (Edward Norton), Mr. Gustave (Ralph Fiennes) and Zero (Tony Revolori) in ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’
Photo credit: Fox Searchlight Pictures