<div style='font: 11pt arial; text-align: left; '>I think Anderson has improved greatly on his directorial style/vision with each subsequent film he's made (Bottle Rocket < Rushmore < The Royal Tennenbaums < The Life Aquatic). First of all, it's about time he cast Bill Murray in a central role and used him to his full potential. Bill Murray has always been the type of actor who can singlehandedly make an average film great or make a good film brilliant; but Anderson's been teasing us since Rushmore by getting Murray and then slapping him in these supporting secondary parts where he doesn't have the chance to shine as much as you know he could. Life Aquatic proves that point in spades.
Aside from Bill Murray, that quirky, children's book-ish world that Anderson started exploring in Royal Tennenbaums really comes to complete fruition in Life Aquatic. The wardrobes and sets still have that great 60s "mod" feel, and the stop-motion animation they use for the strange and fantastic ocean life is just gorgeous and doesn't feel a bit contrived (which it easily could have been).
I know a good many people who thought Royal Tennenbaums was something of a let-down. There is no need to harbor any similar fears for Life Aquatic. This movie picks up any slack that RT may have left in the line. Now I'm ending this mini-review before any more terrible water puns bubble to the surface...er, dammit!</div>
Aside from Bill Murray, that quirky, children's book-ish world that Anderson started exploring in Royal Tennenbaums really comes to complete fruition in Life Aquatic. The wardrobes and sets still have that great 60s "mod" feel, and the stop-motion animation they use for the strange and fantastic ocean life is just gorgeous and doesn't feel a bit contrived (which it easily could have been).
I know a good many people who thought Royal Tennenbaums was something of a let-down. There is no need to harbor any similar fears for Life Aquatic. This movie picks up any slack that RT may have left in the line. Now I'm ending this mini-review before any more terrible water puns bubble to the surface...er, dammit!</div>
[b]Sorry, it looks like I'm going to have to kill you in an instant.[/b]
