What follows is a tiny bit LONG but entertaining movie review!
I hope you’ll read to the end…
I LOVE MOVIES and I couldn’t wait to share with you, a little gem of a film that dropped on Netflix this past Wednesday.
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, written and Directed by Wes Anderson.
I consider Wes Anderson to be a great film specialist in the world of filmmaking who has created his own niche.
If you love movies and have never seen a Wes Anderson film, now’s the time.
In my opinion this film is one of his best. Full disclosure, I haven’t seen all of Anderson’s movies so I find this film to be one of the best of those I have seen.
My favorite Wes Anderson movies are:
The Isle of Dogs
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Moonrise Kingdom
Fantastic Mr. Fox
‘Henry Sugar’ is a VERY short film.
I had settled in to watch what I thought would be a full length feature film. To my surprise the movie was only 39 minutes long!!
WOW! When I realized it was over and it wasn’t episode one of a series. I thought to myself, ok, well is there anything else for Anderson to say here? My answer was a resounding…..NO.
Then I thought, this must have been a passion project of Andersons’ because what filmmaker takes the time, energy and money to make a beautifully crafted artistic film that might be too short to receive any award nominations as we move into award season. It’s not a documentary. Maybe it’ll qualify in the short film category. I’m pulling for it!
Anyway when the movie was over I was surprised but not disappointed or upset that it was soooooo short.
He told the story.
It had a beginning, a middle and a wonderful ending. He did a great job.
Watching the execution of this film had me think that a lot of movies could get to the point in a lot less time (hint... Oppenheimer).
Anderson is a Director who thinks outside the box and this movie is no exception.
In addition to being a creative filmmaker, he’s an artist, a painter. Each frame of this movie is a work of art, as are most of his films. They are meticulously crafted. This is Anderson’s trademark and Brand. His films are easily recognizable.
Anderson also loves the “art” of dialogue. Fasten your seatbelts for this movie folks!
The tempo and speed of the dialogue is dizzyingly fast but understandable. I’ll definitely rewatch this film because…. well….. it’s only 39 minutes long!! It’s like those Cape Cod kettle potato chips, you can’t eat just one!
I notice Anderson uses some of the same actors in many of his movies. I’ve heard that actors love to work with him and I can understand why, he’s such an innovative filmmaker.
Ok, so I’ll tell you a little bit about the plot.
Apparently this is a true story about a wealthy, self absorbed, bored man who goes through a transformation and reinvents his life to be of service to the world. There you have it in a nutshell.
I found this movie to be very inspiring.
Watching the movie reminded me of being on a rollercoaster ride. It’s thrilling, then it’s over.
Trust me, you won’t be bored. You won’t have time to be bored.
You’ll barely have to time to catch your breath!
If a camera had been filming me as I watched the movie, I’m sure I looked like a deer in headlights!
I will sum up my experience of watching this film, like this…..
When I was a little girl and had a bad chest cold, my mother would make me one of her concoctions. She called it a “hot toddie.” I don’t know if that is the correct spelling.
It was hot tea with a slice of lemon and a shot of whiskey.
I LOVED it!
It was worth having a cold just to get a cup at bedtime.
A slow burn going down the throat, warm in the tummy, dizzying for a few minutes, ultimately relaxing and satisfying.