Movie Of The Week: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori
Release: June 13 (Eden Court rerelease)
Rating: 15
Synopsis: The Grand Budapest Hotel recounts the adventures of Gustave H., a legendary concierge at a famous European hotel between the wars, and Zero Moustafa, the lobby boy who becomes his most trusted friend. The story involves the theft and recovery of a priceless Renaissance painting and the battle for an enormous family fortune -- all against the back-drop of a suddenly and dramatically changing Continent.
Why You Should See It: Yes, I know Oculus is also out this week. Yes, I know that Inverness-born Karen Gillan is in it. However, no doubt that film will be covered in staggering amounts of detail elsewhere on this site – stay tuned for that, folks! However, I can't pass up the opportunity to gush over what is one of my favourite films this year.
Directed and written by kook-ball extraordinnaire Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel is just a delight in practically everything it does. The term “magical realism” can easily be applied to the Hotel, the fictional Republic of Zubrowka, and indeed everywhere the camera chooses to frame – everything plays out like a whimsical fantasy.
The cast are in on this as well – there's a warmth at the heart of this movie in the relationships between the characters, along with some brilliant humour. Ralph Fiennes in particular absolutely slays it as Monsieur Gustave, a manners-obsessed force of nature and a callback to a bygone age.
I don't want to write any more about this film – it's best to go in as blind to what's going to happen as possible. All you need to know, and what I can't really stress enough, is how good this film is – if you haven't seen it yet, do so.
Here's the trailer (NSFW):
