Review Catch-Up: The Phoenician Scheme, Anora, & Thunderpants
Before I get into the reviews, here’s a quick update on my upcoming posts and projects:
Next up I have my review of Cobra Kai season one, as well as an anniversary review of Jaws in August since there will be a few screenings of it near me. There was also the NYT list of 100 best movies of the century so far, and I’ve been working on my own list for fun. I do still plan on finishing my essay on David Foster Wallace’s This Is Water, though it’s been difficult not to have it turn into a screed about political current events.
The Phoenician Scheme (2025) - Wes Anderson Returns With Another Elaborately Designed Comedy, and It Is Exactly What You’d Expect
My readers may recall that almost two years ago now, I published my review of Asteroid City. It was my first review on Substack, and while I’m still very proud of it, this one will be a bit less in-depth and esoteric. I do still love Wes Anderson, though he’s been on a bit of a lukewarm streak lately. It’s been a little over ten years since The Grand Budapest Hotel was released, and while I’ve mostly enjoyed his output since then, none have come close to hitting that high. Nevertheless, I was excited to go see his latest film, The Phoenician Scheme.
In the 1950s, Anatole “Sza-Sza” Korda (Benicio del Toro) is a titan of industry, dealing in arms and all sorts of less-than-ethical business practices. After surviving an assassination attempt (the latest of many), he has a vision of his soul on trial in the afterlife while unconscious. Spurred by his spiritual experience, he attempts to reconnect with his estranged daughter - a Catholic novice nun named Liesl (Mia Threapleton) - and to rope her into his latest business endeavor (the titular Phoenician Scheme) as his heir. In order to do so, they set off on a transcontinental journey along with their new tutor and assistant, Bjørn (Michael Cera), to meet with their investors and swindle them into paying more than their agreed shares to fill the massive gap in capital. This all sounds a bit complicated, but believe me when I say that it’s got nothing on Asteroid City, and at heart is a fairly straightforward roadtrip comedy with a bit of espionage and dark humor.
Like all Wes Anderson movies, this is an intricately assembled dolls’ house of a movie. Whether you’ll enjoy it or not depends entirely on your tolerance for his directorial style. As I’ve said before, I am a fan, and I do like the style. So beyond that, how does his latest stack up with the rest of his work, and does it break the lukewarm streak that I mentioned earlier? Personally, I think The Phoenician Scheme is more in line with his later films than his earlier ones. Put in simpler terms, for me that means that it’s good, but not great.
Getting into the specifics, the cinematography is visually striking, as can be expected of a Wes Anderson movie. The performances from the large ensemble cast are all very good, with my favorite being Mia Threapleton as Liesl. Her distrust of her father, his wealth, and his business practices inspire some of the most amusing scenes, but also some of the most heartfelt as the two grow closer and begin to understand each other. Watching Liesl’s upbringing as a nun clash with the vices she picks up along the way is a good source of comedy, particularly when she drinks beer with Bjørn and starts carrying a jewel-encrusted dagger. Benicio del Toro is typically excellent, and Sza-Sza is an interesting character to watch as he goes through a sort of religious reckoning while attempting to save his grand scheme. Michael Cera also fits perfectly into the role of a goofy entomologist and I’d love to see him again in another Wes Anderson flick (or really any other movies, I’m ready for a Cera resurgence). All of the characters do speak in that clipped Wes Anderson comedy-of-manners style, but I didn’t find it too obtrusive in this case.
The script is much tighter than Asteroid City, and that makes for some mixed results. I enjoyed the Phoenician Scheme more outright, but I think AC had a bit more to chew on thematically. Don’t get me wrong, there are themes about familiar relationships, religion, and the value of family versus wealth, but none of it is particularly revelatory. The comedy was more at the forefront of PS, and I laughed out loud several times at the theater. There’s a recurring gag about hand grenades and that had me rolling. It’s a very charming film that’s easy to watch and lose yourself in, and it’s one that I could see myself returning to more than the rest of Anderson’s late-career work. I’d recommend it to anyone that enjoys his movies, and if you haven’t seen any of them before, then it might not be a bad place to start.
Score: 7.5/10
Anora (2024) - How Does the Best Picture Winner Stack Up?
Both my viewing of this movie and my review of it have been long-delayed, so let’s cut to the chase: I like Anora. I think it’s well-acted and well-made. Did I predict it winning Best Picture at the Academy Awards this year like I did with Oppenheimer last year? Nope, I was all set for the Academy to go with either The Brutalist or Emilia Perez. Would Anora have been my personal choice to win? Probably not, that would’ve been The Substance or Conclave. But am I disappointed that it won or do I feel that it’s undeserving? Absolutely not.
Sean Baker is what you might call a humanist filmmaker. His stories and characters feel like they’re about the lives of real people with real problems. He’s got a thing for the hustlers and the down-and-out in this country. His movies tend to be more character studies than plot-driven, and my personal favorite of his is The Florida Project, which is a coming-of-age drama that I’d recommend to most people. Anora is more in the vein of his other films like Tangerine and Red Rocket: a dark comedy/drama surrounding the life of a sex worker. It was on my radar when it was announced, and made it to my watchlist when it won the Palme d’Or last year at Cannes. I wanted to see it during its original run in theaters, but Neon botched the release and it was only available near me for a week, which also happened to be the week last year when I had a nasty cold. But once it hit streaming (and got a physical release from Criterion), I finally gave it a watch.
Ani (Mikey Madison) is a stripper living in Brooklyn, and one night she meets Vanya (Mark Eydelshteyn), the son of a Russian oligarch. Vanya pays her for sex, and then offers to pay her $15k to be his girlfriend for a week. During a whirlwind trip to Vegas, they get married, and Vanya’s parents are less than thrilled. What follows is an anxious, uncomfortable, and often painfully funny odyssey across New York City.
It’s strange. I don’t have as much to say about the movie as I thought I would. On a technical level, it’s very good. The acting, script, direction, and editing are all solid and the awards are well-deserved (even if they wouldn’t necessarily have been my first choice). It might just be that it doesn’t quite fit my personal taste exactly, though I can’t quite pin down why. I really loved the hard left turn the film takes into comedy halfway through, and I can appreciate the nuanced approach that Baker takes towards his characters. Ani, obviously, but Igor (Yura Borisov) also. Igor is a great representation of a hapless character that gets dragged into someone else’s mess and is just trying to make it through. He was surprisingly charming and kind, despite his introduction, and his genuine empathy towards Ani made for a truly heartbreaking final scene. Vanya was easily one of the most punchable characters I’ve seen in a long time, so props to the actor on that.
I enjoyed Anora, and found it to be both compelling and well-made, but I’d struggle to recommend it. Yes, there is a lot of sex (my mother described it as pornographic when she saw it), but my main hang-up is that it doesn’t feel like an easy film to like. Asshole characters and stressful comedy make it a little inaccessible. It’s the kind of movie that’ll make you laugh, but also leave you feeling raw and exhausted afterwards. Baker’s perspective is a deeply human one that explores thoroughly flawed people, even if it isn’t exactly pleasant. But I’m glad that the Academy chose it over some of the “safer” options from last year. I’ll revisit it at some point (most likely for a deeper dive into Sean Baker’s filmography), but probably not anytime soon.
Score: 8/10
Thunderpants (2002) - The Profoundly Silly But Oddly Uplifting Family Comedy Is a True Hidden Gem
Oh, Thunderpants, where to even start? Years ago, I saw this movie mentioned in a RedLetterMedia Best of the Worst video, and promptly forgot about it. Last winter, I came across a DVD copy of it on clearance at Half-Price Books. I figured why not, since I love a good bad-movie. My fiancée and I watched it, and to our surprise we both absolutely loved it. Even more surprising, it was a legitimately good movie, not just so-bad-it’s-good.
Patrick Smash is an ordinary boy, not too bright and not particularly special. Except for one thing: he farts. A lot. He was born with two stomachs and uncontrollable flatulence. Life is hard for Patrick, but with the help of his best friend Alan - a genius with no sense of smell - Patrick learns how to use his unique gift and pursue his dream of being an astronaut.
I’ll be real with you, mileage will vary on this one depending on your tolerance for fart humor. For me, it was the kind of movie that made me feel like a kid again and I could easily laugh along with all of the ridiculous gags. The film has a surprisingly stacked cast (with Rupert Grint, Stephen Fry, Paul Giamatti, Ned Beatty, and Keira Knightley in a cameo role, among others). The production design is also unexpectedly good, feeling a bit like a Tim Burton-inspired suburban fairytale. Thunderpants may be one of the most ridiculous movies I’ve seen in a long time, but it’s also an entirely unanticipated addition to my pantheon of wholesome and comforting movies that I expect to rewatch often. Seek it out and rediscover your inner fart-humor-obsessed child.
Score: 9/10
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