Having enjoyed Asteroid City, I was looking forward to The Phoenician Scheme. The film sees Zsa-zsa Korda played by Benicio del Toro appoint his only daughter Sister Liesl as the heir to his estate as he tries to secure funding for a project. Like a typical Wes Anderson film, this has an all star cast including Michael Cera, Scarlett Johannson, Willem Dafoe, Richard Ayode, Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Riz Ahmed, Mathieu Amalric, Jeffrey Wright and a fantastic looking Benedict Cumberbatch.
Mia Threapleton steals the film as Sister Liesl. She is trying to become a nun but is being persuaded to change her mind by her father who might not be her father. The reason why the character works so well is because Threapleton’s delivery is so dry that it was like she was born to play a part in a Wes Anderson movie. Benicio del Toro is very good as Zsa-Zsa but it was hard to really warm to him when he was in a scene with Threapleton because she is so good. The supporting cast is great. Bryan Cranston and Tom Hanks should be a double act in everything they do because they are so good together. They managed to make basketball seem entertaining. Michael Cera is always good at giving a strange performance but then it's revealed to be done on purpose and the moment where he changes his appearance slightly to try and come across more suave and sophisticated was quite amusing.
I always think that it's strange seeing Scarlet Johansson in this type of film. She was one of the key people in the Marvel cinematic universe for several years and to see her in something so different is quite refreshing. Her role is slightly reduced compared to Asteroid City but she makes it work. Seeing Richard Ayoade play someone with a bit of personality is a strange sight. His delivery when he is doing his normal comedy is probably on the same level as Threapleton. In another life they would have been a couple in this film. Benedict Cumberbatch is in the weirdest make-up I have seen anyone in for quite some time. He doesn't appear until the final 10-15 minutes and then has a great fight with Benicio del Toro.
I’ll be honest that I was slightly disappointed with this film. It’s a film with good performances but I don't think the premise was as good as it was in something like The Grand Budapest or Asteroid City. There are moments that I liked and the performances were all top notch but it's the plot that I struggled with. It seems like Wes Anderson was happy for the performances to take centre stage and make us forget about the overall plot. Things didn't seem to have the charm and fun that it did in Asteroid City. The black and white flashbacks are weird and I didn't find them that interesting. The relationship between Zsa-Zsa and Liesl had gotten better by the time that the flashbacks had concluded and the only real benefit to them was seeing Willem Dafoe and Bill Murray.
The Phoenician Scheme is a disappointment but still worth seeing. It’s just if this were your first Wes Anderson film then you would wonder what the fuss was about.