The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou | |
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Theatrical release poster
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Directed by | Wes Anderson |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Music by | Mark Mothersbaugh |
Cinematography | Robert Yeoman |
Edited by | David Moritz |
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Distributed by | Buena Vista Pictures |
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Running time
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118 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $50 million |
Box office | $34.8 million |
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou is a 2004 American comedy-drama film directed, co-written, and co-produced by Wes Anderson. It is Anderson's fourth feature-length film and was released in the United States on 25 December, 2004. It was written by Anderson and Noah Baumbach and was filmed in and around Naples, Ponza, and the Italian Riviera.
The film stars Bill Murray as the eponymous Zissou, an eccentric oceanographer who sets out to exact revenge on the "jaguar shark" that ate his partner Esteban. Zissou is both a parody of and homage to French diving pioneer Jacques-Yves Cousteau (1910–1997), to whom the film is dedicated. Cate Blanchett, Willem Dafoe, Michael Gambon, Jeff Goldblum, Anjelica Huston, Owen Wilson, Seu Jorge, and Bud Cort are also featured in the film.
While oceanographer Steve Zissou is working on his latest documentary at sea, his best friend Esteban du Plantier is eaten by a creature Zissou describes as a "Jaguar shark." For his next project, Zissou is determined to document the shark's destruction.
The crew aboard Zissou's aging research vessel Belafonte includes his estranged wife Eleanor, chief strategist and financial backer; Pelé dos Santos, a safety expert and Brazilian guitarist who sings David Bowie songs in Portuguese; and Klaus Daimler, the German first mate who views Zissou and Esteban as father figures. Minor crew members include Vikram Ray, cameraman; Bobby Ogata, frogman; Vladimir Wolodarsky, physicist and soundtrack composer; Renzo Pietro, sound man; and Anne-Marie Sakowitz, script girl. Also included is a recent group of unpaid interns from the University of North Alaska. The "Team Zissou" venture has hit a decline however; having not released a successful documentary in nine years.