Product Description: Internationally famous ocenaographer steve zissou & his crew set sail on an expedition to hunt down the mysterious elusive - possibly nonexistent - jaguar shark that killed zissous partner during the documentary filming of their latest adventure. Studio: Buena Vista Home Video Release Date: 05/16/2006 Starring: Bill Murray Cate Blanchett
Amazon.com: In The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, director Wes Anderson takes his familiar stable of actors on a field trip to a fantasy aquarium, complete with stop-motion, candy-striped crabs and rainbow seahorses. And though Anderson does expand his horizons in terms of retro-special effects and a whimsical use of color, fans will otherwise find themselves in well-charted waters. As The Life Aquatic opens, Zissou (Bill Murray), a self-involved, Jacques Cousteau-like filmmaker, has just released a documentary depicting the death of his best friend Esteban, who was eaten by some sort of sea creature--possibly a jaguar shark. Zissou's troubles also include his waning popularity with the public, and a nemesis (Jeff Goldblum) who hogs up all the grant money. Hope arrives in the form of Ned Plimpton (Owen Wilson), an amiable Kentuckian who may be Zissou's son. Despite his lack of enthusiasm for fatherhood, Zissou welcomes Ned--and Ned in turn saves Zissou's new documentary (in which he seeks revenge on the jaguar shark) in more ways than one.
One of Wes Anderson's greatest achievements as a director to date has been launching the autumnal melancholy phase of Bill Murray's career, starting with Rushmore in 1998, and Murray delivers a similarly comedic yet low-key performance here. Unfortunately, Zissou is one of the few characters in this ensemble to achieve multi-dimensionality. Even co-star Wilson doesn't get to develop Ned much beyond Noble Southerner, and he ends up seeming more like a prop for illustrating Zissou's emotional development rather than his own man. The Life Aquatic probably won't be remembered as a great film, but it is still one that no Anderson (or Murray) fan can afford to miss.--Leah Weathersby
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Audience Rating: R (Restricted) Binding: DVD Brand: Miramax EAN: 9780788860294 Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC ISBN: 0788860291 Label: Miramax Home Entertainment Languages:EnglishOriginal LanguageDolby Digital 5.1FrenchOriginal LanguageDolby Digital 5.1GermanOriginal LanguageDolby Digital 5.1IcelandicOriginal LanguageDolby Digital 5.1ItalianOriginal LanguageDolby Digital 5.1PortugueseOriginal LanguageDolby Digital 5.1TagalogOriginal LanguageDolby Digital 5.1SpanishSubtitledFrenchSubtitled Manufacturer: Miramax Home Entertainment MPN: DISD40464D Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: Miramax Home Entertainment Region Code: 1 Release Date: May 10, 2005 Running Time: 119 minutes Studio: Miramax Home Entertainment Theatrical Release Date: December 25, 2004
Customer Reviews
Bloated, strange and immensely satisfying
Some Indie types denigrate this film as Wes Anderson's most pretentious outing. They complain about its length, hodge-podge nature, and lack of general cohesion. While there are some dragging scenes (Steve's desperate visit to Eleanor comes to mind) the majority of the film is highly-stylized, beautifully rendered oceanic excitement, anchored (har har) by a PERFECT turn by Bill Murray as the titular, pot-smoking, arrogant, middle-aged Cousteau wannabe. The other characters are hilarious too and ... Read More