Nancy Lloyd

A perfectly spot-on spoof of pretentiousness in writing, in film, in aspirational small-town media that is itself probably the most pretentious movie ever. A glimpse at the cast list is a giveaway; it’s a who’s who of the actoriest actors around: Frances McDormand, Timothee Chalomet, Benicio del Toro, Jeffrey Wright. Of course it’s beyond visually stunning, every frame of every scene almost satirically symmetrical, color saturated or black and white and greys shaded and sculpted to perfection. So, is this Wes Anderson satirizing himself? Or is this dramedy meant to be taken “seriously” at face value? The film is amusing, but it feels like a high-minded student project. A really well-written, well-acted, and very high budget film.