Review of Bottle Rocket (1996) by Disraelly C — 02 Apr 2009

I think this was supposed to be a comedy, it got a chuckle from me about once, maybe twice, throughout the entire run time, but I'm still pretty sure it was meant to be a comedy. Actually that's what Wes Anderson does, comedies, right? I've only seen TDL so I don't know if he intentionally goes out of his way to make comedies that aren't funny or attempt to showcase Owen Wilson, but this film does seem to reinforce that thought.

Speaking of thought, this film had a lot to think about, which made up for the lack of laughs, so I guess I can see why people like Wes Anderson. Anderson does bring a lot to the table with this film, high lighted by great camera work that really helps to draw out some of the subtlety in the characters, and I can respect that, Hell I'd even consider saying I admire that, but despite how layered the film is, and I'm fairly sure it's a complex and well crafted film, the lack of comedy in a pseudo-comedy is disheartening and the plot is not really all that compelling.

Though the trade off is character development, and I suppose that's another strength with the script, so these should cancel out probably, but I'd say no because it's an interesting experience, but not an incredibly enjoyable one.

Also, this film only reinforces my belief that all the talent in the Wilson family found its way to Luke, as Owen Wilson is incredibly unbearable whilst Luke, as usual, is engaging and endearing. Owen is nowhere near as bad as he is in that other Anderson film that I watched, and hardly at his lowest level of Wedding Crashers or You, Me, and Dupree, but he's still really insufferable and one note.

I can't really recommend this film, though I can see it as something I would return to at some point if only to admire the technical craft and try to get more out of what Anderson has put together, which I guess translates to a score pretty well.