One Life Aquatic Steve Zissou is a world known, and partially renowned oceanographic explorer. He has been depicted through his documentary films as a larger than life character, yet it seems that each unsuccessful film shows more and more of his humanity. The film introduces us to Steve Zissou when he is at an all time low in his career, having just lost his best friend and crewmate Esteban. Steve is now searching for something more amazing than anything he has ever done, just to reaffirm his place in life. In the film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (Wes Anderson, 2004), parallelism can be found between two very similar scenes. By contrasting the second film premiere to the first, the transformation of Steve Zissou can be seen through his departure down the red carpet.
The crew of the Belafonte starts their stroll down the red carpet; red knit caps shaping their heads, clad in their finest suits. Classical music fills the air, ringing the delicate atmosphere. The ragtag team exits their film premiere; their half cocked smiles tell us more than an interview ever could. A heckler from the crowd shouts toward the most somber of them all, Steve Zissou; a middle-aged oceanographer carrying a “crayon seahorse” he just received from a crewmate’s nephew, named Werner.
Steve stands unassuming for a second, and then rushes the man, only to be punched in the face seconds later. He suddenly realizes the bag containing the seahorse has been punctured by the fight. He grabs a passerby’s wine glass and pours the seahorse in. The scene finalizes as Steve Zissou flees the film premiere.
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He makes his way through the crowd as the only visible part of him is the raised wine glass. While exiting his film premiere, Steve is looking for reassurance of his film’s credibility. The only comfort offered comes in the form of a “crayon seahorse” from Werner, a crewmate’s pre-pubescent nephew. As Steve leaves he is surrounded by his friends and colleagues; and though their proximity is close, their demeanor shows some distance in their relationships. After the ensuing fight, Steve exits by himself, blending into the crowd except for the raised wine glass containing the seahorse. The raised wine glass represents an obvious conflict of disposition in Steve Zissou.
Though the film has shown him to be imperfect in many ways, he attempts to adapt to the persona of a very confident and brash person, much like a person who raises his wine glass to propose a toast. This scene formally introduces the audience to Steve Zissou, flaws, imperfections and all. As Steve Zissou’s life develops in the film, he realizes the false representation of character from his documentary films have carried over to his own life. The film proceeds to show new relationships form as he eventually accepts his son, Ned, and rationalizes his marriage to his wife, Eleanor. He finds renewed life from Ned looking up to him and a rekindled affection from Eleanor.
Just as Steve starts to reveal himself to his son, Ned is involved in a helicopter accident and is killed in Steve’s arms. Through his lost relationships with his best friend and his estranged son; he ultimately makes peace with himself and acknowledges his own shortcomings. The film hits it climax as Steve attains his goal for the film, finding the “jaguar shark.” Just at that moment he begins to weep at he observes the animal that resulted in the loss of Esteban and Ned. Each person in the submarine puts a comforting hand on Steve, affirming Steve Zissou’s place in life. Seated on the red carpet outside at the premiere of his best film in ages, Steve Zissou isolates himself from the rest of the viewing audience. At the second premiere, Steve removes himself from the film early, no longer looking for the acclamation that is finally within his grasp.
The Essay on An Auteurist Critique of The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
Wes Anderson is a world-renowned filmmaker known for creating vividly colorful films that are consistent with his auteur signature. Though he has only directed 7 films (not including his upcoming film and two short films), he is a perfect example of how even a small body of work can demonstrate auteur theory. Anderson’s films have frequent themes, visual and methodological style and he even uses a ...
A quiet murmur from the red carpet crowd is intermittently interrupted by the flash and click of cameras. Werner, the little boy sits down right next to Steve, just minutes before the film is over. Just as applause is heard from within the theatre, Steve quietly says “This is an adventure,” and raises Werner onto his shoulders; leading the audience down the red carpet away from the theatre. Rock music is played loudly while Steve Zissou exits the red carpet, not slowing for anything. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou shows parallelism by comparing the behavior of Steve Zissou at two nearly identical scenes. Each premiere takes place in the same location, yet the musical score and Zissou’s actions highlight the change in persona.
The lack of sound generates a large distinction from the first premiere as Steve sits undisturbed outside, showing the general public himself in a natural state. He waits no longer looking to be eulogized. Yet he does get the acclaim he has long been searching for, but it does not come from a reporter, colleague, or critic. It comes from the innocent young boy in lederhosen, named Werner. He sees the boy’s fascination with his whole mystique, and realizes what started him down his life path many years ago. When the audience starts to exit, Steve lofts Werner onto his shoulders and exits the red carpet ahead of them.
This is reminiscent of the first scene, when he raises the wine glass containing the seahorse. Yet this time Steve marches out as the leader of the pack, showing a large change in stature. As he leaves the premiere, his departure is emphasized by the utilization of slow motion and by the abrasive rock song. He exits from the second premiere carefree and at ease, showing a side of Steve Zissou never before seen..
