Checking in

Looks like Wes Anderson has another art house hit with The Grand Budapest Hotel.  It played at four cinemas over the weekend and grossed an astonishing $800,000.  I saw it (in a packed theatre, of course) and while I think it'd be a hit in any case, I wonder if some people are getting the wrong idea.

In the past, Anderson's quirky vision often starred big names--Gene Hackman, Bill Murray, Owen Wilson and others.  This time around, it's got Ralph Fiennes--big enough, I suppose--but most of the others are window dressing.

Really the whole show is Fiennes, as the hotel's concierge, along with newcomer Tony Revolori as lobby boy Zero. As for the other names, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum, Harvey Keitel, Edward Norton and Saoirse Ronan have a few moments but not that much to do.  Jude Law, F. Murray Abraham and Tilda Swinton have even less.  Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman, Tom Wilkinson, Fisher Stevens and Bob Balaban, even less.

I don't think this gets in the way of the audience's enjoyment, but fans of these actors may be disappointed.  It's also a bit more violent than you might expect.