There is a distinctive tension within almost every frame created by writer-director Wes Anderson. Geometric visual preconceptions of framing. Actors are sometimes moving, but more often. The manifestation of storytelling as a series of the cleanest shoebox dioramas in modern cinemas: it’s more than style or appearance to Anderson. It is his way of looking at the world through the lens of comics at the edge of the realm of art installation.
The tension in these images comes from two locations. Unhappy Place: When you spit out tension for cartoon jokes or laughter, or when you go sideways, it sometimes dies an extra, small instantaneous death, due to the extreme form of the presentation, for the arch.
The more fortunate source of tension is where the actor lives. In Anderson’s gorgeous talented ensemble, the majority of performers meet the basic requirements of appearing in Wes Anderson films. It also involves the challenge of portraying humans in a certain realm of unreality, and even in motion, in a kind of lasting peace.
But hitting the mark and holding the pose is not enough. Of course, every Anderson comedy has movement, and in the best of all, the movement and vision gags are funny because of the tranquility surrounding that movement. Whatever you want to call Anderson’s universe – I’ll go with Dead Pandia – it’s not easy to activate as a performer. When the right actor wiggles freely from constraints, finds rhythm, heartbeat, and human sparks, it’s magic.
Benicio del Toro is the star of Anderson’s 12th and latest “Phoenician Scheme.” However, Ringer is Michael Cera. Norwegian tutor Bjørn Lund is adopted as a generic fact-tam by a shady, surprising, deadly entrepreneur played by Del Toro.
At one time, Sera joined the top tier of Anderson alumni, including Ralph Fiennes (The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Great Tale of Henry Sugar) and from Anderson’s previous, more looser years, Jean Hackman and Angelica Houston (The Royal Tenenbaum) and Bill Murray as God). Serra is subtle in everything he does, from precious, cheap dialect humor to sudden bursts of jealousy. Even if the “Phoenician Plan” is sometimes like that, he is enjoyable.
The film is mainly about other characters. Frequent targets of assassins, eternally surviving planes crash in between business transactions, Anatole “ZSA-ZSA” Korda (Del Toro) embarks on the most dangerous development project of his life, presented by the title Anderson. It consists of dams, tunnels, canals and the destruction of common colonialists in desert regions (with fictional, but many real-world Middle Eastern inspiration). Funding this beast means negotiating with some investors, including French nightclub owners (Matthew Amarilick), American industrialists (Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston), and more than anything, Corda’s estranged daughter, Reels, the cynical Novitiate, and Corda’s intended Hiles, Hayles, played by Meer Platelon.
The Phoenician Plan is a story of what money can buy and what money can’t. Together with the episodes, screenwriter Anderson (who works from a story co-created by Roma Coppola) treats Korda as a cheeky survivor of great wealth. Through his fundraising adventures and the realization that he will not last forever, Korda learns a bit about what makes legacy important from Reesle. Meanwhile, he negotiates family matters with his 10 young sons and his sc lady, Uncle Nubal (Benedict Cumberbatch).
The overall atmosphere of fishy exoticism owes something to “Mr. Arkadin.” Anderson works with a new cinematographer for him, the brilliant Bruno del Bonnell, who filmed in 35mm films. Anderson regulars Adam Stockhausen (production design, first class) and Millenacanonero (costume design, as usual, brilliant and vibrant) evoke the dream-like setting of the 1950s with every soundstage bound detail.
And a story? Well, that’s a bit of a problem with excessive elaboration. The “Phoenician Scheme” follows a relatively simple line of narratives, where Korda each takes a chapter on a large, slave labour-dependent construction project, each of his respected (and literal) shoeboxes of research. It’s easier to analyze what’s going on here, compared to hyperlinking and layering of “French Dispatch” and “Asteroid City.” However, the main character is a bit boring. And somehow, now, on Planet Earth in 2025, we’re in a chord with a mix of movies about the noisy oligarchs.
But it’s impressive to see what happens in this top and bottom Anderson movie epilogue. Del Toro looks stunning, but struggles to find the lightness of touch the material can use – get an on-screen relaxation moment in the epilogue. It’s by design: he’s not the same person at the end of his story. But I wonder if Anderson made the mistake of keeping Del Toro and Thrae Pluton in close contact on his way to the story’s destination.
Beautiful mixed bags, say to everything, for example. But for Serra, I can see the “Phoenician Plan” again. Serra certainly returns to Anderson Fold.
“The Phoenician Plan” – 2.5 stars (out of four)
MPA Rating: PG-13 (violent content, bloody images, some sexual material, nude images, smoking
Running time: 1:45
How to watch: Premiere at the theatre on June 6th
Michael Phillips is a Tribune critic.
Original issue: June 9, 2025, 2:04pm EDT
