Film show: Wes Anderson returns with ‘The Phoenician Scheme'
11:55
Issued on: Modified:
Fresh from the Cannes film festival, our critic Ben Croll and Dheepthika Laurent look at the latest film releases, starting with Wes Anderson's star-studded whimsical film, "The Phoenician Scheme".
They also look at "Hot Milk", a film adaptation of a best-selling novel by Deborah Levy about a controlling mother-daughter relationship and "Another End", the sci-fi romantic drama featuring Gael Garcia Bernal.
We end with "Winged Migration", the Oscar nominated French nature documentary that was released in 2001 and spectacularly followed the migration of a flock of birds. Its re-release hopes to find fans among a new generation of cinemagoers.
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Euronews
6 days ago
- Euronews
Film of the Week: 'The Phoenician Scheme' - Wes Anderson's empty shell
After three decades delighting audiences with ornamental eccentricities and highly stylised aesthetics, is Wes Anderson now simply recycling his same old tricks? Worse, has he forgotten that immersive world-building becomes the crafting of empty shells without precious emotional payoffs? On the back of 2023's Asteroid City and judging by this year's offering, it's a frustrating 'yes' on both counts. Set in 1950, The Phoenician Scheme starts off with a bang. Literally. Corrupt tycoon Anatole 'Zsa-zsa' Korda (Benicio Del Toro), one of the richest men in Europe, is attempting to survive his latest assassination attempt and escape from his sixth plane crash. It's an incredibly promising way to kick things off: explosions, blood, the surprise ejecting of a useless pilot... It's a blast. Once he's come to terms with the fact that his enemies may soon punch his ticket, the industrialist visits his estranged daughter Liesl (Mia Threapleton) and tells her that she is to be his sole heir. Despite his other nine boys. After entrusting his empire to Liesl, who is training to become a nun and whose pious reservations regarding her father's less-than-ethical practices run deep, Korda enlists her to aid him in his latest business venture. Considering the government is planning to sabotage his most audacious project yet in the fictional country of Phoenicia – the details of which he has neatly contained within shoeboxes – he plans a whistle stop tour to visit investors and donors to collect promised advances on the project. Along for the racketeering ride is Bjorn (Michael Cera, who was born to be a perfect addition to the Andersoniverse).He's a Norwegian tutor specialising in the insect world, who may not be as scholarly or as bumbling as he seems... The trio embark on a fast-paced trip that features glorified cameos from dandies Leland (Tom Hanks) and Reagan (Bryan Cranston), a fez-wearing nightclub owner named Marseilles Bob (Matthieu Amalric), American sailor Marty (Jeffrey Wright) and Cousin Hilda (Scarlett Johansson), all the way to the final-level boss - the dastardly Uncle Nubar (a bearded and bushy eyebrowed Benedict Cumberbatch). This all sounds good on paper, but despite a promising pre-credits kick-off and a pleasing pace which lulls you into thinking that dire Asteroid City was a minor mishap and that The Phoenician Scheme could very well be a return to form for Anderson, this latest flight of fancy ends up frustratingly shallow. The rapid-fire and hyper-articulated dialogue falls flat; the starry roll-call of A-listers is wasted; the insistent gag about offering each investor a souvenir hand grenade becomes bizarrely tiresome; and unlike previous offerings The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou, The Grand Budapest Hotel or Fantastic Mr. Fox, nothing registers on an emotional level. As joyful as it is to see Benicio Del Toro playing a nonchalant capitalist with redemption (ish) on the mind, he is given precious little in terms of character evolution – especially when compared to similar Anderson archetypes previously played by Bill Murray, Ralph Fiennes and George Clooney in the three aforementioned (and far superior) adventures. These films had heart and emotional payoffs to match the delightfully offbeat and twee antics. All we get here is twee. Not that Wesheads will be left wanting. They'll still have a great time marveling at production designer Adam Stockhausen's craft, with the impeccably manicured sets and Anderson's devotion to symmetry still a visual treat to behold. But not even an amusing blink-and-you'll-miss-him cameo from Bill Murray playing God during one of the Bergman-esque afterlife segments or Anderson newcomer Mia Threaplton stealing every scene she's in with her spot-on deadpan delivery ('They say you murdered my mother. I feel the need to address this') can save The Phoenician Scheme. Like Anderson's recent output (minus the messy but unfairly maligned The French Dispatch), his latest caper lacks the emotional core that ought to complement the stylish visuals. The director may tick off his treasured hallmarks – precise framing, immaculate detail, neglectful parents seeking their warped version of absolution – but it lacks soul, to the point of toppling into parody. So, while not as pleased with itself as Asteroid City was, this brisker and more linear adventure still gives off the impression that Anderson and his regular co-writing compadre Roman Coppola are simply keen to enjoy themselves more than their audience. Anderson may have become a genre onto himself, but considering The Phoenician Scheme ends up joining Asteroid City as one of his least rewarding films to date, the master of the meticulously crafted confection should do well to remind himself the following: sacrificing human depth in favour of quirk for quirk's sake will only make audience members nostalgic for his older and far less empty spectacles. Even The French Dispatch apologists. The Phoenician Scheme is out in cinemas now.
France 24
28-05-2025
- France 24
Film show: Wes Anderson returns with ‘The Phoenician Scheme'
11:55 Issued on: Modified: Fresh from the Cannes film festival, our critic Ben Croll and Dheepthika Laurent look at the latest film releases, starting with Wes Anderson's star-studded whimsical film, "The Phoenician Scheme". They also look at "Hot Milk", a film adaptation of a best-selling novel by Deborah Levy about a controlling mother-daughter relationship and "Another End", the sci-fi romantic drama featuring Gael Garcia Bernal. We end with "Winged Migration", the Oscar nominated French nature documentary that was released in 2001 and spectacularly followed the migration of a flock of birds. Its re-release hopes to find fans among a new generation of cinemagoers.
LeMonde
28-05-2025
- LeMonde
Palme d'Or winner Jafar Panahi expresses support for Iranian trucker strike
Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi backed week-long nationwide strikes by truckers on Wednesday, March 28, as a "loud call" to the authorities, after arriving home from his triumph at the Cannes film festival. Truck drivers across Iran were striking for a seventh day on Wednesday in a stoppage rare in its length and magnitude, seeking better conditions in a sector crucial for the economy in the Islamic republic. After starting last week in the southwestern port city of Bandar Abbas, the strike action has spread across the country, according to reports by monitoring groups on social media and Persian-language media based outside Iran. The truck drivers are protesting a rise in insurance premiums, poor road security, high fuel prices and low freight rates, according to union statements cited by these media. "They are fed up. They have no choice but to go strike," Panahi wrote on Instagram, having returned to Iran on Monday after winning the Palme d'or for his latest film "It Was Just an Accident". "When thieves and illiterate people are put in charge, the result is this terrible situation: corruption and mismanagement in everything, from the economy and culture to the environment and politics," added Panahi. The acclaimed director was long banned from filmmaking and unable to leave Iran, having also spent time in prison due to his political stances. "This strike is a loud call to the government saying: 'Enough! Stop all this oppression and plunder'," he said. Persian-language television channels based outside Iran, including Iran International and Manoto, which are critical of the government, said the strike was continuing Wednesday, broadcasting images of deserted roads sent from inside Iran. Tankers carrying fuel from the major refinery in Abadan in western Iran have now joined the strike, Manoto said. It was not immediately possible to independently verify the images. The same outlets also indicated that there have been strikes in other sectors in Iran, notably by bakers who are angered by early morning power cuts when they are baking bread.
