BROADCASTS.com

b'

On the podcast this week, Skipper Steve and Sean are going to avenge our best friend in the delightful and unique Wes Anderson film, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.

Seems like Scuba Steve is doing his very best to become our nation\\u2019s very first Pun-Maker Laureate. He\\u2019s got them firing off left and right as we get into this film. Somebody nominate him for that very prestigious role already!

It may be safe to say that this one is Wes Anderson\\u2019s least appreciated films and we\\u2019re not really sure what that\\u2019s all about. Even his first film, Bottle Rocket, gets more love and we think that\\u2019s a damn shame. This is all anecdotal, of course, but we\\u2019re probably not far off with that assessment and we want this one to get the love it deserves!

The Life Aquatic has a lot of heart. That seems to be a constant facet of Anderson\\u2019s films\\u2014underneath their quirky veneer, they\\u2019re full to the brim with real and affecting emotion. The script and actors are always giving it everything they\\u2019ve got. This one also has more melancholy than many of his other films. I mean, the thing opens with Zissou\\u2019s best friend being eaten by a freaking shark! How damn terrible is that?

But then he meets someone who may be his son and that just changes his entire world even more. We found it fascinating to see Zissou filled with more purpose after losing his friend and meeting his possible son than he\\u2019d had in many years. It\\u2019s a wonderful thing when someone knows exactly what they want to do with their life.

But enough with the heavy emotion. Let\\u2019s talk about the Belafonte! Steve Zissou\\u2019s ship is amazing! And those stop-motion fish were so inventive! And we want one of those red caps! But maybe not those Speedos? \\u2026Screw it, give us some of those Speedos! We can rock them!

Papa Steve feels that this film has a wonderful soundscape and Sean can only agree with that. Not only does the sound work and the music bring you into a complete and fascinating world, it\\u2019s also just a blast to listen to. It can be funnier than you\\u2019d ever expect the sound to be. This is work done at a very high level.

Robert Yeoman\\u2019s cinematography is, as always, in a class of its own. Sure, the look of a Wes Anderson film is usually attributed to its exacting, eccentric director, but leaving it at that would be doing a disservice to Mr. Yeoman. His eye for lighting, movement, and framing is top-notch. Anytime he\\u2019s listed as the cinematographer for a film you know it\\u2019s going to be a good one.

Oh yeah, we were serious about that Academy Award for Best Podcast. We want that thing on our mantles!

(Recorded on June 04, 2020)

Links to Stuff We Mentioned:

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou - IMDb

\\xa0The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou trailer - YouTube

Scrubs - IMDb

Nitrogen narcosis - Wikipedia

Those wonderfully wacky Batman transitions - YouTube

The Criterion Collection version of The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

Michael Gambon - IMDb

Fantastic Mr. Fox - IMDb

Criminal Minds - IMDb

The Evil Dead - IMDb

Army of Darkness - IMDb