10-film Wes Anderson Archive, and separate releases of Isle of Dogs and The French Dispatch for the first time coming to Criterion Blu-Ray in September!
DIRECTOR-APPROVED TWENTY-DISC 4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION COLLECTOR’S SET FEATURES
- – New 4K digital masters of Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The Darjeeling Limited, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Moonrise Kingdom, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Isle of Dogs, and The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun, supervised and approved by director Wes Anderson, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks
- Ten 4K UHD discs of the films presented in Dolby Vision HDR and ten Blu-rays with the films and special features
- – Over twenty-five hours of special features, including audio commentaries, interviews, documentaries, deleted scenes, auditions, short films, home movies, commercials, storyboards, animation tests, archival recordings, still photography, discussions/analyses, and visual essays
- – English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- – PLUS: Essays by Richard Brody, James L. Brooks, Bilge Ebiri, Moeko Fujii, Kent Jones, Dave Kehr, Geoffrey O’Brien, Martin Scorsese, and Erica Wagner
Wes Anderson interviews in Hollywood Reporter and Times
Speaking to this year’s Cannes, where did the story for The Phoenician Scheme come from?
I had an idea that I actually brought up to Benicio at Cannes when we showed The French Dispatch. We talked about it briefly, and I didn’t really know what it was, but I had the image of Benicio playing a Euro business tycoon, like somebody in an Antonioni movie. I could just see him in it; I could see him and his sunglasses. But one of the main inspirations — along with a handful of real European businessmen — but the more personal connection is my wife’s father [Fouad Malouf]. He’s Lebanese, and he was an amazing kind of larger-than-life figure, and I really loved him. The thing about him was he was somebody who is wise and very intelligent, but a little bit scary. It was always good to walk into a restaurant with him because everything got taken care of immediately. There are many details of this character that draw on him.
The next film, The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), starred a cantankerous Gene Hackman. “Gene was very annoyed about the money,” Anderson says. “He was furious. Also, he didn’t want to do the film anyway. I talked him into it — I just didn’t go away.” With Hackman on board, Anderson cast Gwyneth Paltrow and Anjelica Huston. “And everybody else said yes to the salary, so Gene just went with it — and that just became our way.”
Hackman died this year, aged 95, making The Royal Tenenbaums his last great film. Did Anderson stay in touch? “Not a word,” he says. “In fact he left without saying goodbye. He was grumpy — we had friction. He didn’t enjoy it. I was probably too young and it was annoying to him.”
The last time Anderson spoke to Hackman was after the film’s release. “And he liked it,” the director says, beaming. “But he told me he didn’t understand it when we were shooting.” He sighs. “I wish I’d shown him ten minutes, early on. Then, maybe, he would have said, ‘OK, I get it.’”
Wes-inspired Tattoos, episode 1
I’m not into tats (the misses is), but these are marvelous. If you have or see one, send it along to edwardappleby@yankeeracers.org!
Click through for more.
Music Moments: The Royal Tenenbaums
Royal: Look, I know I’m going to be the bad guy on this one, but I just want to say the last six days have been the best six days of probably my whole life.
Narrator: Immediately after making this statement, Royal realized that it was true.
First look footage of The French Dispatch from Fox Searchlight
The Fonts of Wes Anderson, Part 1
Inside 111 Archer Avenue
Wednesday Round-Up
IndieWire: For $20,000, You Can Now Rent the House from ‘The Royal Tenenbaums’
“The famed house from Wes Anderson’s 2001 ‘The Royal Tenenbaums‘ is now available for rent for a cool $20,000 a month in the Hamilton Heights neighborhood of Harlem. Anderson discovered the house while location scouting in 2000 and said he admired the home’s storybook quality.’ Indeed, looking closely at the home’s listing on Street Easy reveals it’s been renovated since filming, but the house still retains plenty of the charm it held in the Oscar-nominated movie. “
Entertainment Inquirer: French Dispatch to complete for Palme d’Or at Cannes
“The latest film by American director Wes Anderson, ‘The French Dispatch,’ will premiere at this year’s Cannes film festival in the official competition, organizers said Friday.”
IndieWire: Royal Tenenbaums cast will reunite at Tribeca (sans Gene Hackman)
“The Tribeca Film Festival is adding some splashy talks to its upcoming New York City lineup, which promises to be the first major film festival in the U.S. to return to business as normal after the pandemic…
The 20th anniversary of “The Royal Tenenbaums” will be celebrated with a reunion of director Wes Anderson with stars Alec Baldwin, Gwyneth Paltrow, Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson, Anjelica Huston, and Danny Glover. “
FilmStage: Wes Anderson to Shoot Next Film in Spain This Summer
“El Pais reports that the director will be staying in Europe, but headed to Spain––specifically Chinchón in southeast Madrid––this July, August, and September to shoot his next movie. Sets are already being built for the production that resemble desert landscapes seen in westerns, though it’s reported that the film will not be in that genre.”
Upcoming Wes Anderson Funko vinyl figures
From the new Vnyl line: