The Grand Budapest Hotel: Wes Anderson builds an intricate narrative that is extremely entertaining and touching as he tells the story of a student reading a book. No, really. That’s not the innermost layer, granted; that would be the melancholic adventures of a hotel concierge somewhere in pre-World War II Europe (of sorts). The large cast present in the poster suggests that it goes way beyond that, and every turn and twist is fun to watch. The main reason for that is the performance of Ralph Fiennes as the charming, efficient, romantic, potty-mouthed concierge; he talks a mile a minute and his comic timing is impeccable. Tony Revolori, as his protégé, is a fine presence as well. Saoirse Ronan is lovely, and F. Murray Abraham, rather touching. There’s not a wrong note in the whole cast, in fact.

Aesthetically, the film is a marvel. Composer Alexandre Desplat’s original score is inspired by Eastern European traditional folk music, and it’s both beautiful to listen to and always a perfect fit to what is happening on-screen. Costume designer Milena Canonero dresses each character bringing their personality to the surface, and the work is also visually attractive to boot. Production designer Adam Stockhausen conjures a number of environments that are very distinctive, detailed, and appealing. Cinematographer Robert Yeoman captures it all, with great camera movement and lighting, and the distinctive grammar developed over the years continues to dazzle.

As an unrelated bonus, here is a trio of advertisement films Wes Anderson directed:

Also, the same company commissioned a short, a lovely piece shot by cinematographer Darius Khondji and starring Jason Schwartzman as a race driver who crashes during a race in a small Italian village.

Read what I wrote before: The Grand Budapest Hotel