My Thoughts on the FIlm, The Phonecian Scheme…

Wes Anderson is a love or hate filmmaker. He has a definite audience, which may or may not check off the boxes of a cult, but the fanbase is sizable; their devotion, palpable.

Anderson's latest, The Phonician Scheme, includes his customary layered narrative. his quirky, melancholic characters on quests for connection or identity, and his unique visual symmetry. Not to mention his use of deadpan humor, mise en abyme (story-within-a-story), and the retro-theatrical aesthetic.

I'd like to see his take on a Tom Robbins novel. Or one by Karen Russell. But he usually makes films of his own stories. It's a shame. really.

Set in 1950, Zsa-zsa Korda, played brilliantly by Benicio Del Toro, a successful yet underhanded businessman, suffers several assassination attempts (six from plane crashes) until he realizes that his business empire needs an heir. Dismissing his nine adopted sons, he chooses his estranged daughter Liesl (Mia Threapleton, in a fine, nuanced performance) as his successor, a novitiate nun. First hired as an entomologist tutor for the nine boys, Bjorn (Michael Cera, who successfully chews up the scenery) is then promoted to the position of Korda's secretary assistant.

To complete the titular, shifty plan, Korda needs to travel to several places in Europe to hammer out final-detail deals with a number of his business rivals. Rivals who, the film never explains, signed on with him as partners in this grand scheme. Meanwhile, Liesl, praying—blessing, and sprinkling holy water at appropriate times in the film—picks up some business tips, as well as some bad habits, from her father.

All in all, the film is a complete hoot. It might even be one of his better films to date.

I recommend this film to Anderson fans (who have probably already seen it), but not to the uninitiated. For those folks, I'd suggest Bottle Rocket and Rushmore, then chronologically enjoy the rest of the auteur's filmography.