Wes Anderson movies announce themselves as being from him. There is something different and unique about a Wes Anderson movie, and you can see it almost immediately. When I sat down with Jeff Goldblum and Willem Dafoe, both of whom have been in more than one Anderson movie including “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” I wanted to know if they found something about the production itself to be different as well.
As it turns out, in their minds, it is somewhat different. “The atmosphere is quite heightened, it's theatrical. I can't think of too many films that are so designed, a world that is so art directed.,” Dafoe said. Goldblum readily agreed, explaining that the set for the film was a “Wes Anderson… acid trip of a place.”
What I think is particularly noticeable about the interview is that I asked my first question and Dafoe and Goldblum went off and had a back and forth about what they noticed about working on an Anderson film and how it is set apart from other projects. To me, it looked like something the two men have considered on their own; that there is a specific set of reasons they have chosen to work with the director on more than one occasion.
Listen to Goldblum's thoughts starting at around the two minute mark. He talks for about 30 seconds about the feeling Anderson gives off on the set and how people respond. Then, keep listening, because Dafoe builds off of that and explains how personal the stories are to Anderson.
Goldblum may have put it best when he says, “It's a very beautiful atmosphere.”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel” opens in limited release today and stars Dafoe, Goldblum, Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori, and many more.