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The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

Adventure · Comedy · Drama · 2004

Renowned oceanographer Steve Zissou has sworn vengeance upon the rare shark that devoured a member of his crew. In addition to his regular team, he is joined on his boat by Ned, a man who believes Zissou to be his father, and Jane, a journalist pregnant by a married man. They travel the sea, all too often running into pirates and, perhaps more traumatically, various figures from Zissou's past, including his estranged wife, Eleanor.

Movie details

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

“The deeper you go, the weirder life gets.”

2004 Adventure · Comedy · Drama 1h 59m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.1 / 10

Community rating

Renowned oceanographer Steve Zissou has sworn vengeance upon the rare shark that devoured a member of his crew. In addition to his regular team, he is joined on his boat by Ned, a man who believes Zissou to be his father, and Jane, a journalist pregnant by a married man. They travel the sea, all too often running into pirates and, perhaps more traumatically, various figures from Zissou's past, including his estranged wife, Eleanor.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Wes Anderson

Written by

Wes Anderson · Noah Baumbach

Bill Murray

Bill Murray

Steve Zissou

Owen Wilson

Owen Wilson

Ned Plimpton

Cate Blanchett

Cate Blanchett

Jane Winslett-Richardson

Anjelica Huston

Anjelica Huston

Eleanor Zissou

Willem Dafoe

Willem Dafoe

Klaus Daimler

Jeff Goldblum

Jeff Goldblum

Alistair Hennessey

Michael Gambon

Michael Gambon

Oseary Drakoulias

Court is in session

Put The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Sentimental Softie

“Sincerity is not manipulation.”

The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.

The prosecution The Cool Ironist

“The strings are showing.”

Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.