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Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett, Anjelica Huston, Willem Dafoe ... see more see more... , Jeff Goldblum , Michael Gambon , Bud Cort , Seu Jorge , Seymour Cassel , Peter Stormare , Noah Taylor , Wallace Wolodarsky , Robyn Cohen , Matthew Gray Gubler

The first effort from director Wes Anderson since his critically beloved The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou finds the filmmaker re-teaming with a number of familiar faces, includ... read more read more...ing Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Anjelica Huston, and Seymour Cassel. Murray plays Steve Zissou, an eccentric and renowned oceanographer who has decided to seek out and enact mortal revenge on a shark that ate one of the men on his team. Along for the ride is Ned Plimpton (Owen Wilson), a young man who has joined Zissou's crew after showing up claiming to be the seaman's long-lost son and Zissou's co-producer (and estranged wife), Eleanor Angelica Huston. As the expedition ensues, the two bond and Plimpton falls for a female journalist (Cate Blanchett) who is writing a piece on Zissou. The crew meets a host of obstacles on their journey, including pirates, kidnapping, and bankruptcy. Adding a flair of whimsy to the film's aesthetic, the sea creatures and underwater scenes in the film have been created using stop-motion animation under the direction of Henry Selick, the man behind The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach. The ensemble cast also includes Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum, Michael Gambon, Noah Taylor, and Bud Cort. ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi

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82% liked it

182,948 ratings

Critics

53% liked it

176 critics

R, 1 hr. 58 min.

Directed by: Wes Anderson

Release Date: December 10, 2004

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DVD Release Date: April 26, 2005

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Stats: 14,325 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (14,325)

  • fb100001048934982
    March 24, 2012
    fb100001048934982
    If i couldn't call myself a Wes Anderson fan before, I sure can now. Easily his most poorly received film, i couldn't help but fall in love with 'The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou'. Bill Murray carries the film with such quirkiness and superb comic timing that he immediately ma... read morekes the film irresistible. Anderson's trademark quirk and whimsy is still here, and some might say its even been multiplied. So why not a 5 star rating like 'Rushmore' or 'The Royal Tenenbaums'? One of my favorite aspects of Anderson's films is the music, and there was a heavy lack of such brilliance that is found in his other films. Seu Jorge's talent is interesting, but i was disappointed to not see too much classic british rock in the mix, an Anderson film template. 'The Life Aquatic' would fall flat sometimes too in the middle third of the film. Also, it seems like Anderson does not know how to handle his action sequences. Despite these minor complaints, the film is a delight to behold. There is action, emotion, flair, and quirk, and combined with great performances, it all blends together so wonderfully.
  • fb100001592288964
    January 17, 2012
    fb100001592288964
    Unique and infused with Wes Anderson's typicla techniques, The Life Aquatic is an eccentric dramedy featuring on one Bill Murray's greatest performances.
  • TheDudeLebowski65
    December 16, 2011
    TheDudeLebowski65
    I found that The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou was fairly flawed but decent comedy nonetheless. Director Wes Anderson directs this whimsical comedy and does a fairly decent job at delivering a good little film. Some may hate this film, and though I found things that I didn't enj... read moreoy about the film, for what it was The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou had enough wit and charm to make it worth watching. Bill Murray gives a good performance in the title character and Owen Wilson and Cate Blanchett. The performances make up this eccentric comedy, and they make the film what it is. I enjoyed the film, but didn't find it great. Overall, the film was a decent little comedy. The film has its flaws, but is still a fun little quirky comedy. I thought that despite its flaws, that the good cast delivered here, and their performances alone save this film from being a total disappointment. Wes Anderson is a talented director, and he's made a fine little film. Not a perfect film by any means, this film does deliver a good story, and is pretty entertaining. I enjoyed the film, but did feel it could have been better. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou is a decent comedy overall, though not perfect, it's still an amusing little film that delivers a few good laughs and good performances. Worth watching with your family.
  • cancercapricorn2002
    October 28, 2011
    cancercapricorn2002
    The strangest thing about this movie is that, being so weird and original, it still strikes hard on your feelings. The characters have a life of their own that makes you think that you know them from before. And you love them for that. Bill Murray is just wonderful here. The musi... read morec and the CGI images are so original, so modern and so anachronistic at the same time that make the perfect complement for this weird story that is, in fact, a work of fantasy about what could have been the life of a maritime show celebrity as Jacques Cousteau. There were moments when I saw this film that I did not know if this was a dream or if it was an actual movie. It also touches you in so many ways with its melancholy and its hints at the meaning of friendship and fatherhood? I am not a fan of Wes Anderson per se but let me tell you, he hit me hard with this film.
  • fb1664868775
    October 27, 2011
    fb1664868775
    In my opinion this film is a masterpiece. Visually stunning and more experimental than any of his earlier films, The Life Aquatic is touching and hilarious. With a score featuring the songs of David Bowie and a terrific ensemble, Anderson shows he's not ready to go for anything t... read moreoo conventional;
  • xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    June 28, 2011
    xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    With a plan to exact revenge on a mythical shark that killed his partner, oceanographer Steve Zissou rallies a crew that includes his estranged wife, a journalist, and a man who may or may not be his son.

    Good movie. The story seems bizarre and weird but it was still decent and... read more at times funny. Bill Murray always does quirky and not so common characters in his movie roles and he always delivers quite good including here with a ravishing performance. Very good cast!

    Steve Zissou, sea-film auteur a la Jacques Cousteau, has reason to be melancholy: his partner has been eaten, perhaps by a mythic jaguar shark, his wife may be taking up with her ex-husband, a young man appears claiming Steve is his father (Steve hates fathers), his most recent films have tanked, he's having trouble raising money for his venture to revenge his partner, and he's attracted to a pregnant reporter who prefers the pretender. At sea, in pursuit of the shark, will he escape pirates and mutiny, forge the bonds of fatherhood, place his arm around his wife, find the monster of the deep, re-establish box office hegemony, and discover a reason to smile?
  • fb535316333
    May 17, 2011
    fb535316333
    Everything you love about Wes Anderson's style packed into this quirky comedy about... I'm not even sure what it's about.
  • mjgildea
    April 8, 2011
    mjgildea
    I haven't seen The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou since it came out on video about six years ago and I loved it then. But watching it last night was almost like watching a different movie. The cinematography and direction came off just as great as they did with my initial viewing... read more, so did the music. But what seemed to stick out a little more this time around was the acting and the dialogue and how hysterical this movie was. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou also had me thinking this may have been Bill Murray's best performance. And considering the company he was in here, that's a pretty big feat.
  • stevenecarrier
    December 9, 2010
    stevenecarrier
    "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" is Wes Anderson's most ambitious film that includes great locations and sets (the scenes with the boat set are very memorable) and a cast that is clearly having a blast. Too bad that the film is tonally all over the place and the comedy never ... read morereally works. It's an oddball picture for sure, and beloved by it's target audience, but I guess that just isn't me.
  • FrizzDrop
    December 9, 2010
    FrizzDrop
    Another Wes Anderson creation of epic proportions, the illustrious relationships, pivotal ease of the characters dialouge and attitudes towards one another, and Steve's illicit honesty in his wrath upon the shark who killed his partner, make for another great hipster chic comedy,... read more with a tad of posterity for actors whose careers have emanated to this film.

View All The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou Reviews

Critic Reviews

Andrew Sarris
February 3, 2005
Andrew Sarris, New York Observer

A little too laid-back for its own good. Full Review

Anthony Lane
January 15, 2005
Anthony Lane, New Yorker

It is heartening to reflect that the best of Bill Murray may be yet to come.

Mick LaSalle
January 11, 2005
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

The film is often quite funny. Full Review

(CNN.com) Paul Clinton
December 27, 2004
(CNN.com) Paul Clinton, CNN.com

Full of [Wes Anderson's] many trademark flourishes. Full Review

Geoff Pevere
December 24, 2004
Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star

It's one of the great mysteries of contemporary Hollywood that a talent as sideways as Wes Anderson gets bankrolled by a major, and not famously risky, studio like Disney. Full Review

Joe Baltake
December 24, 2004
Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee

This movie is so odd, so uncommercial and so unformulaic, particularly for something produced by a major studio (Disney, in this case), that I can't imagine how Anderson got his idea for it past the f... Full Review

Roger Moore
December 24, 2004
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

The whimsy feels forced, and Murray is the only player allowed to hunt for laughs. More Goldblum would have helped. Wilson acts overshadowed, Dafoe has too little screen time and Blanchett is only a m... Full Review

Tom Long
December 24, 2004
Tom Long, Detroit News

A ruse of a film that doesn't have a tenth of the wit it thinks it has.

Robert Denerstein
December 24, 2004
Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News

Vastly disappointing, an uneasy mixture of characters and events, artifice and realism.

Lisa Kennedy
December 24, 2004
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post

At times arrogant, furious, ridiculous and mopey, in the end, Steve Zissou carries The Life Aquatic with an understated grace. Full Review

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Facts

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    • Esteban du Plantier: He's the Zissou.
    • Klaus Daimler: Who the shit is Kingsley Zissou?
    • Bill Ubell: No Captain! That's Cedric. He's a friend.
    • Steve Zissou: Merci, Cedric. Remind me, we'll send him a red cap and a Speedo.
    • Steve Zissou: Son of a bitch, I'm sick of these dolphins.
    • Steve Zissou: Bulldykes can get pregnant.
    • Ned Plimpton: P.S. Do you ever wish you could breathe underwater?
Submit a Fact | View All

The Life Aquatic ... : Watch Free on TV

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou Trivia

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zisso... Trivia

  • This actor lived the The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou, investigated an American Psycho, and aided a couple of Boondock Saints.  Answer »
  • Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett, Willem Defoe and Anjelica Huston. Name the film  Answer »
  • Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go on an overnight drunk, and in 10 days I'm going to set out to find the shark that ate my friend and destroy it. Anyone who wants to tag along is more than welcome. Bill Murray recited the above line in what movie?  Answer »
  • In what movie do all interns share a glock?  Answer »
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