5 Stars for The Grand Budapest Hotel

Rating: 10/10 (11 April 2014)

From the first few minutes of the film, Wes Anderson keeps us guessing.
Just as we begin to wrap our heads around one scene, this layer is immediately peeled back to reveal another equally perplexing one. The story in a nutshell centres around M. Gustave, a renowned concierge who prides himself on his impeccable service, and his unlikely friendship with Zero Moustafa, a bell boy at the establishment, as they try to reclaim what was rightfully theirs with the help of a mish mash of random characters and Agatha and her sweet delicious cakes from Mendl's.
Anderson's characteristically symmetric framing and set-up of each shot works seamlessly with his somewhat abrupt style of storytelling. We as the viewer feel like we've been plucked from our own realities and dropped into the much more fascinating private lives of the characters of the film. At times it may even make us feel like unwanted intruders as we learn more about these people through watching their day-to-day interactions than we would from an omniscient narrator voiced by Morgan Freeman (no offence Morgan Freeman if you're reading this, your voice is awesome).
In true Wes Anderson fashion, the cast list reads as a 'Who's who of actors who are, like, famous and stuff'. But this almost ridiculous sounding ensemble works because there are just too many of them and too little time for us as the audience to choose a favourite. The characters are also just quirky enough that you forget about Ralph Fiennes as that Garderner who was Constant, Adrien Brody as the Pianist or Owen Wilson as that guy with the annoying voice- oh wait
This film really felt a lot more tightly packed than Anderson's previous film Moonrise Kingdom. The plot is complex without being too hard to follow, with just the right dash of ridiculousness for the audience to be chuckling throughout the movie. Whereas Moonrise Kingdom relied more heavily on the use of children as the main characters and the humour that arose from that, much of the comedy in The Grand Budapest Hotel comes from the fast-paced and witty dialogue – especially from M. Gustave (Fiennes), the concierge you can't help but love (especially if you're a blonde octogenarian of the female persuasion).
While it is no secret that I adore Wes Anderson (see previous Moonrise Kingdom review), I have to say that his latest film has actually exceeded my expectations. Finding fault with his films is something I always struggle with and the reason is that his work is just so different and incomparable to anything else out there that it can only be considered an artwork rather than a movie. And just like the painting, 'Boy with Apple', which many of the film's events are centred around, it can only be appreciated in its totality, with its strengths and imperfections – worms and all.
IMDb: 8.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 92%
(From projectreel: http://projectreel.wordpress.com)