The Grand Budapest Hotel

I first saw a trailer for The Grand Budapest Hotel several months ago. It actually looked really funny and a bit odd (but that isn't always a bad thing). Plus it stars Ralph Fiennes whom I've always been a huge fan of. So now I've finally had a chance to see this. For once the trailer didn't lie- this movie was really enjoyable.

The Grand Budapest Hotel is directed by Wes Anderson. Some of of his previous movies include Moonrise Kingdom, The Royal Tenenbaums, and The Fantastic Mr. Fox. It tells the story of a legendary concierge named M. Gustave (Ralph Fiennes), who runs a famous European hotel, and Zero Moustafa (Tony Revolori)- a lobby boy who becomes his most trusted confidant.

One of the things I noticed right away is how clever the dialog is. Major credit to the writing team- We Anderson and Hugo Guinness. I wish I could write dialog half as good as this.

They managed to put together an amazing cast. Ralph Fiennes hits it out of the park once again. I can't imagine anyone else playing the role. He's charming and funny. His comedic timing is just perfect. I especially loved his scenes with Tony Revolori. The two of them played off each other really well. You could tell they had a blast filming this.

The rest of the cast includes F. Murray Abraham, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum, Jude Law, Edward Norton, Saoirse Ronan, and many more. According to IMDB this movie had a cast of 100. There are a few actors who make cameo appearances that I would love to talk about but I don't want to ruin the surprise.

My only issue with the casting is they got F. Murray Abraham to play an older Zero. Don't get me wrong he played the part very well, but he doesn't look much like Tony Revolori. It's a bit distracting at first.

I did laugh a lot throughout the movie (although Wes Anderson's humor may not be for everyone) but there's also a few dark moments which may take people by surprise. I like how Wes Anderson was able to blend the two together.

The movie isn't exactly flawless. Even though it's run time is only an hour and forty minutes, it really seemed to drag at times. I was surprised when I walked out of the theater and checked the time on my phone that it was still fairly early. It seemed a lot later.

The Grand Budapest Hotel is a well acted movie that I think many can enjoy if given a chance. Especially those who are fans of any of the actors in this or if you're really into quirky, indy British comedies/dramas.

My Rating: 8/10