Asteroid City (2023) – Review

Quick Thoughts – Grade – A – Asteroid City is my favorite Wes Anderson film since The Darjeeling Limited. Anderson’s idea to build a film around a televised production of a play was a smart idea as he’s able to keep his trademark production and costume design while putting a renewed focus on meaningful character interactions. I really hope that Scarlett Johansson and Jason Schwartzman are remembered when the awards season rolls around because they have excellent chemistry and their interactions are the strongest part of the film. 

When I first heard that Asteroid City would feature  20+ well known A-list actors stuffed into a film that is essentially three movies in one, I was a bit worried, because it’s a lot. My worries were almost instantly assuaged as everything fits seamlessly as Anderson found ways to give all the A-list actors meaningful roles and he even found time to include gags about martini vending machines, ramps that go nowhere, and a thieving alien. 

Set in 1955, Asteroid City tells the story about a group of students, parents, traveling musicians, and scientists being quarantined in a small town after an alien encounter. The twist is we are watching actors playing the roles of the students, parents, traveling musicians and scientists in a play written by Conrad Earp (Edward Norton), a famous playwright who adores the American west. In an added wrinkle, Anderson creates another narrative in which the characters go behind the scenes of the play as it’s being created. In other words, Jason Schwartzmen plays a character named Augie Steenbeck in the play, but his real name is Jones Halls, an actor who occasionally leaves the stage (where the play is happening) to talk about his motivation with director Schubert Green (Adrian Brody). Once again, it’s a lot, but it works, and it also allows Wes and cinematographer Robert D. Yeoman to set up beautiful looking shots that take place in the meticulously designed buildings created by production designer Adam Stockhausen (Both Yeoman and Stockhausen are Anderson regulars). 

My favorite interactions are between divorced A-list actor Midge Campbell (Scarlett Johansson) and widowed combat photographer Augie Steenbeck (Jason Scwartzmen) who are in Asteroid City to attend a Junior Stargazer convention with their children. The two meet inside the only diner in the town (which was inspired by Ace in the Hole and Bad Day at Black Rock) and quickly become friends as their lodgings are right next to each other. Both are drawn to each other because of shared melancholy, severe bluntness and the fact that Augie loves photographing Midge. Their conversations feel a bit dangerous, and they brought me back to the days of The Royal Tenenbaums which features some beautiful character interactions (the “I’m worried about you Richie” scene is an all-timer) and some very unsettling violence.

Going all the way back to Bottle Rocket, Anderson has always been interested in sadness, quirkiness and intimate interactions that typically involve intricate paintings, symmetry, and booze. By sticking a group of interesting teenagers and their parents in a picturesque small town that has a martini vending machine and adorable pastel cottages, he’s able to create some very memorable moments that I really connected with. 

Final thoughts – I love Asteroid City. Watch it.