Amongst the filmmakers who have distinctive style, a calling card, if you will, Wes Anderson might be the most distinctive.
And his latest movie, the star-studded ‘Asteroid City’ could not be more Andersonian if it tried. It’s bursting with his hallmarks: the beautifully composed frames, the carefully curated sets, props and costumes. The clipped, witty, rat-a-tat dialogue. The whimsical music.
‘Asteroid City’ feels like it would sit happily on a double bill with, say, ‘Moonrise Kingdom’.
(L to R) Jake Ryan, Jason Schwartzman and Tom Hanks in director Wes Anderson’s ‘Asteroid City,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features.
What’s the story of ‘Asteroid City’?
Written by Anderson from a story he devised with regular collaborator Roman Coppola, this finds the director in a sci-fi mood with a B-movie feel, albeit channeled through his own particular sensibility.
The official synopsis sounds like it was written by the team who used to create the blurbs for ‘Mad Men’ episodes, succinct, and giving away little save for one main nugget. Ready? Here we go…
‘Asteroid City’ is set in a fictional American desert town circa 1955.
What can we expect?
“The itinerary of a Junior Stargazer/Space Cadet convention (organized to bring together students and parents from across the country for fellowship and scholarly competition) is spectacularly disrupted by world-changing events.”
‘City’s spiel doesn’t say it, but we will: Aliens. There are aliens, or at least an alien in this thing. Mostly, though, it appears to be about a random assortment of humans brought together during the event, some waylaid by car trouble, others specifically sent to study in a town that is focused on the asteroid that crashed to Earth millions of years ago.
This is Wes Anderson bringing his trademark style and feel blending with something a little more Spielberg. But instead of full-on wonder, expect eyebrow-raised confusion from the characters. Speaking of…
Scarlett Johansson in director Wes Anderson’s Asteroid City,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features.
Who is in ‘Asteroid City’?
When we used the term “star-studded”, we did not do it lightly. This thing is loaded with recognizable A-listers and rising stars.
Tom Hanks is probably the biggest name making his Anderson debut here. He plays the father of Jason Schwartzman’s (a true Anderson regular) recently widowed character, who is stuck in the city with his kids after his car “explodes”.
Scarlett Johansson, who lent her voice to ‘Isle of Dogs’, plays a movie star who is also in the locale, and might just form a romantic connection with Schwartzman.
Then you have other returning Anderson players, including Tilda Swinton, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Tony Revolori, Edward Norton, Jeffrey Wright and Jeff Goldblum. Not to mention Bryan Cranston and Liev Schreiber, who also voiced characters in ‘Dogs’.
And that’s just the tip of an ensemble that also includes Margot Robbie, Hope Davis,Stephen Park (who was also in ‘The French Dispatch’), Rupert Friend, Maya Hawke, Steve Carell, Matt Dillon, Hong Chau and Jake Ryan.
‘Asteroid City’ will make its way into theaters on June 16th.
And the good news for Anderson fans? “Fandersons” –– no, the director would hate that –– is that we can expect not one but two films from him this year, as Roald Dahl adaptation ‘The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar’, which stars Ralph Fiennes,Benedict Cumberbatch and Ben Kingsley, is making its way through post-production and should be here later in 2023.
Steve Carell in director Wes Anderson’s ‘Asteroid City,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features.
(L to R) Fisher Stevens, Jeffrey Wright, Tony Revolori, and Bob Balaban in director Wes Anderson’s ‘Asteroid City,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Courtesy of Pop. 87 Productions/Focus Features.
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‘Asteroid City’ is produced by American Empirical Pictures and Indian Paintbrush. It is set to release in theaters on June 23rd, 2023.
