THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

Ralph Fiennes, Adrien Brody, F. Murray

Abraham, Owen Wilson, Bill Murray,

Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum,

Tony Revolori, Edward Norton

From the director who gave us such distinctively quirky films such as "The Darjeeling Limited" and "The Royal Tenenbaums", comes another gem hemmed from his brilliantly creative mind - The Grand Budapest Hotel.

It recounts the adventures of a hotel concierge named Monsieur Gustave (Ralph Fiennes) who along with his lobby boy, Zero Moustafa (Tony Revolori) set out to unravel the truth behind the mysterious death of one of its distinguished guests. 

What ensues are well crafted scenes upon scenes of complex framework of the narratives being presented through a visually vibrant cinematography, from symmetrical shots, to characters running in slow motion, as well as chase scenes, and explanatory montages - all of which are typically expected and pleasantly anticipated from a Wes Anderson penned film.

The plot itself is quite funny and captivates the audience with its sublimely awkward to the point of being outright ridiculous (in a good way, if there is such a thing!) story line and its numerous yet essential side plots. 

Having said that, I admit there are some shortcomings like certain situations are sometimes built up and then let off easy. Regardless, it didn't detract too much from the main essence of the film -  the beautiful account of the friendship that forms between a poor lobby boy and the legendary concierge who took him under his wing.

Plenty of major stars (Bill Murray, Ed Norton, Adrien Brody, Jude Law to mention a few) add support to the main characters. Even though some appear briefly or in cameo parts, all of them lend credence to the merry assortment of interesting characters they each play.

I could go on and on about the good merits of this whimsical film but I'd recommend that you watch it with an open mind, so we could all nod our heads in agreement and proclaim that this may be the best film yet from director Wes Anderson.