Myself I feel very safe .

A growing criticism of Wes Anderson is that his films favor style over substance. While I don't fully subscribe to this view, I find myself inching closer with each new release. What feels increasingly absent post Budapest, is meaningful character development. Comedy takes center stage in this one, and some scenes are truly brilliant, but I felt so little connection to characters.

This comes from someone who never has watched a Wes Anderson film before. To me this movie was not my style, I was bored to tears and even fell asleep during the movie. If you are a fan of his previous films you may like this. But I felt the story was just stupid. Just not my cuppa tea.

'The Phoenician Scheme' is Wes Anderson being Wes Anderson (complimentary). I loved this! 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' and 'The French Dispatch' are works of this director that I've enjoyed most, but this 2025 release is on another level for me. It's as amusing as it as stunning, Anderson films are unmistakably Anderson and this one is no different; it has everything you'd expect from a picture of his. The all-star cast list is usual for his flicks as well, here there are plenty of actors that I enjoy; so it was never gonna disappoint, I guess. Benicio del Toro is an outstanding lead, I've always liked him as an actor ('Sicario', 'The Hunted') but this is his first performance (at least from the ten flicks featuring him that I've now seen) that is truly top notch in my mind; one impossible to forget, without doubt. Mia Threapleton is the only prominent onscreen performer that I wasn't previously aware of; weirdly mind, because I recognised her voice 100% but when looking at her filmography, it turns out I've apparently not seen her in anything - odd, perhaps someone sounds just like her? Where to begin in regards to the rest of the cast? Michael Cera is terrific, Tom Hanks and Bryan Cranston are top fun, Mathieu Amalric gives as good as Richard Ayoade, Jeffrey Wright and Benedict Cumberbatch (quite the look!). So many other big names in there too. I still have eight Wes Anderson films to see at some point, but having only watched five he is evidently a reliable guy. I'd be surprised if I disliked any of those other works of his, especially as I didn't actually definitively like 'Moonrise Kingdom' but even that has its positives.

The Writer and especially the collection of Actors they have for this movie has us thinking it would become interesting at some point. From start to end, what the heck did i just watch ? What a total "Meh" and waste of time ..