The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
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The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou is Wes Anderson's fourth feature length film and was released in the U.S. on December 25, 2004. It was written by Anderson and Noah Baumbach and was filmed in and around Rome, Italy. The offbeat comedy film stars Bill Murray as eccentric oceanographer Steve Zissou, who seeks to exact revenge on a shark that ate his partner, Esteban. Murray's character is both a parody of and homage to Jacques-Yves Cousteau, to whom the film is dedicated.
It was released May 10, 2005, on DVD as part of the Criterion Collection.
Plot
This movie details the adventures of the once-famed oceanographer and documentarian Steve Zissou. As with most of his recent films, his current film about his best friend Esteban du Plantier's (Seymour Cassel) death from a "Jaguar shark" attack is a flop, and for his next project he is determined to find the creature and destroy it. Steve's crew aboard his "research vessel" Belafonte includes Pelé dos Santos (Seu Jorge), safety expert and Brazilian musician who sings David Bowie songs in Portuguese; Klaus Daimler (Willem Dafoe), a lovable German second-in-command who views Steve and Estaban as father figures and feels threatened by Steve's presumed son, Ned Plimpton (Owen Wilson). Minor crew members include Vikram Ray (Waris Ahluwalia), a cameraman identified mostly by his long beard and wearing a red turban as opposed to the trademark red Zissou beanie that the other crew members wear, and described in Zissou's featured film documentary as a man "born on the Ganges"; Bobby Ogata (Niels Koizumi), Team Zissou's frogman who is usually seen eating (in the film he was seen eating a banana as Ned was diving and a slice of bread in the sauna); Vladimir Wolodarsky (Noah Taylor), crew experimentator and original score composer; Renzo Pietro (Pamel Wdowczak), screen editor; and Anne-Marie Sakowitz (Robyn Cohen), script girl who is usually seen topless throughout the movie. She commits mutiny and jumps ship with Zissou's pack of unpaid college interns (who attend the University of North Alaska) after being raided by pirates.Ned is a polite, innocent and childlike Southern gentleman whose mother had recently died. After meeting Steve at a film premiere, he takes a break from his job as an airline pilot in Kentucky to join the Zissou crew, and finances the new film when no one else will. Steve is also followed by a reporter Jane Winslett-Richardson (Cate Blanchett), who is a fan of his and pregnant with her married boss's child. She eventually falls in love with Ned. As a result, a rivalry develops between Ned and Steve, the elder of which is himself infatuated with Jane. The Belafonte crew sets off on one last mission, facing pirates, financial problems, rescuing a "bond company stooge" (Bud Cort) (hired by Zissou's producer Oseary Drakoulias (Michael Gambon)) and Zissou's successful, suave, rich, and "part-gay" nemesis Alistair Hennessey (Jeff Goldblum), and reuniting with his wife Eleanor (Anjelica Huston) who was once married to Hennessey. But while searching for the Jaguar Shark, the Zissou helicopter crashes, injuring Steve and killing Ned. Although it is revealed that Steve is sterile, Steve and Ned are as close as genuine father and son. Steve finally tracks down the shark but decides not to kill it, both because of its beauty and his lack of dynamite. Viewing the shark finally validates a daily existence that Steve feared may have become meaningless. Eleanor is moved by this and falls for Steve again. The finished "film-within-a-film" is a hit, and Steve wins an award, regaining respect worldwide.
Trivia
- "Zissou" was the nickname of French photographer Jacques Henri Lartigue's older brother. The portrait of Lord Mandrake, Zissou's mentor, is based on a famous photograph of Lartigue, and the photographer (who died in 1986) is even credited as playing the part in the end credits. Wes Anderson also referenced the photographer's work in Rushmore. Although Anderson had made up the main character's unlikely name, it was eventually learned that there is a real Steve Zissou, a trial lawyer in New York. After being contacted by the film's production company, Zissou granted permission for his name to be used in the film, and he is listed in the film's credits.[link]
- Waris Ahluwalia, the actor who plays Vikram Ray, is a popular jewelry designer in Hollywood.
- The movie is parodied in the Simpsons episode "Homer's Paternity Coot."
- This movie is parodied in the Guild Wars Factions quest, [The Zenos Squad].
- Before Ned boards the helicopter with Steve, he reads a letter written to him by Jane. The letter only appears on screen for a few seconds, making it impossible to read it entirely without freezing a frame of the shot. It reads as follows:
- Dear Ned,
- I just wanted to say again how
- much I loved the sand dollar
- necklace. The peppermint dental
- floss was an inspired touch. Who
- are you, Ned Plimpton? I find
- myself asking that question. I
- hope you allow me to find out.
- Love, Jane
Cast
- Bill Murray - Steve Zissou
- Owen Wilson - Ned Plimpton
- Cate Blanchett - Jane Winslett-Richardson
- Anjelica Huston - Eleanor Zissou
- Willem Dafoe - Klaus Daimler
- Jeff Goldblum - Alistair Hennessey
- Michael Gambon - Oseary Drakoulias
- Noah Taylor - Vladimir Wolodarsky
- Bud Cort - Bill Ubell, "Bond Company Stooge"
- Seu Jorge - Pelé dos Santos
- Robyn Cohen - Anne-Marie Sakowitz
- Waris Ahluwalia - Vikram Ray
- Niels Koizumi - Bobby Ogata
- Pawel Wdowczak - Renzo Pietro
- Matthew Gray Gubler - Intern #1
Film References
- At the end of the film as Ned Plimpton is about to take off in a helicopter, Klaus shows up and thanks Ned for stitching the letter K into the crew's newly made insignia next to a dolphin. Ned brushes him off, and Klaus then steps back in and says "You're not listening; I didn't just like it!" and then does a military salute. This is similar to a scene in Lawrence of Arabia where T.E. Lawrence follows up a first thanks with a second thanks, and then a lame salute to the contemptuous General Murray who reluctantly signed off on a mission proposed by Mr. Dryden that would send T.E. Lawrence to Arabia to appraise the situation.
- In "This is an Adventure," one of the Criterion Collection extras, a scene featuring Willem Dafoe is described in one take by Wes Anderson as "Christlike." This slyly refers to Willem's portrayal of Jesus in the Martin Scorsese film The Last Temptation of Christ.
- At one point Steve Zissou and Ned Plimpton are standing outside Jane Winslett-Richardson's cabin door. Steve says "Not this one, Klaus", a little homage to the character of Jules in the Truffaut film Jules et Jim. Jules and Jim have been happily sharing their girlfriends, but when Kathe comes onto the scene, Jules is smitten.
Soundtrack
As with all of Anderson's previous films, Devo member Mark Mothersbaugh composed the original score. In addition to Mothersbaugh's music, the soundtrack features songs by older artists and, most notably, David Bowie songs performed in Portuguese by cast member Seu Jorge (who adapted some lyrics to make them relevant to the film's story). All of the David Bowie songs featured in the film are originally from the 1969 album Space Oddity, the 1971 album Hunky Dory, 1972's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars or 1974's Diamond Dogs. Anderson also enlisted the services of Australian film composer Sven Libaek.- Shark Attack Theme - Sven Libaek
- Loquasto International Film Festival - Mothersbaugh
- Life on Mars? - David Bowie
- Starman - Seu Jorge
- Let Me Tell You About My Boat - Mothersbaugh
- Rebel Rebel - Seu Jorge
- Zissou Society Blue Star Cadets/Ned's Theme Take 1 [Take] - Mothersbaugh
- Gut Feeling - Devo
- Open Sea Theme - Sven Libaek
- Rock & Roll Suicide - Seu Jorge
- Here's to You - Joan Baez
- We Call Them Pirates Out Here - Mothersbaugh
- Search and Destroy - Iggy & the Stooges
- Niña de Puerta Oscura - Paco de Lucía
- Life on Mars? - Seu Jorge
- Ping Island/Lightning Strike Rescue Op - Mothersbaugh
- Five Years - Seu Jorge
- 30 Century Man - Scott Walker
- Way I Feel Inside - The Zombies
- Queen Bitch - David Bowie
Soundtrack trivia
- Several songs are featured in the film but do not appear on the soundtrack, including "Starálfur" by Sigur Rós, and some of Seu Jorge's performances of David Bowie songs. A more complete compilation of Seu Jorge's performances can be found on The Life Aquatic Studio Sessions Featuring Seu Jorge (released by Hollywood Records on November 22, 2005). The Criterion Collection release of the movie also features his performances on the second disc marked "supplements."
- The song "Let Me Tell You About My Boat" by Mark Mothersbaugh contains the melody of "Scrapping & Yelling" played backwards. "Scrapping & Yelling" is a song that Mothersbaugh created and was featured previously in Wes Anderson's film The Royal Tenenbaums. Mothersbaugh muses that this was for "good luck".
External links
- [}}}] at Rotten Tomatoes
- [}}}] at Box Office Mojo
- [The Criterion Collection DVD]
- [www.thelifeaquatic.org] A site for marine biologists, wildlife film makers, and those who love the sea and adventure.
| The Films of Wes Anderson | |
|---|---|
| Features Bottle Rocket (1996) | Rushmore | The Royal Tenenbaums | The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou | Fantastic Mr. Fox | |
| Shorts Bottle Rocket (1994) | |
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