“Asteroid City”: A Cosmic Coming-of-Age That You Need to Watch Twice

By: Diana Padilla

“I think I know now what I realize we are. Two catastrophically wounded people who don’t express the depths of their pain because… we don’t want to.” 

Wes Anderson’s latest film, Asteroid City, is colorfully stylized and is everything you could want out of a Wes Anderson movie, yet not what you think it is. It is a coming of age story about grief, death, and desire, something that many of the characters are presented with alongside the backdrop of a 1950s summer camp with a cosmic twist. The film features many talented people such as Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman, Maya Hawke, Willem Dafoe, Margot Robbie, and many others. 

If you are not familiar with Wes Anderson, he is a film director who is known for his comedies with an often dry sense of humor, stylized symmetry, and touches of emotional drama. He has directed films such as Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009), The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), and Isle of Dogs (2018). 

The film opens in black and white with a nameless television host talking directly to the audience, breaking the fourth wall. He gives us a “backstage look” into the creation of a new play, “Asteroid City.” The film itself follows both the plot of the play itself (shown in color) and the “behind the scenes” of the play (shown in black and white), frequently cutting back and forth between the two narratives. The contrast is very interesting, especially when it comes to color. The city within the play is colorful and filled with whimsical elements with everything from the inventions of the gifted “Junior Stargazers” to the alien that pays a couple visits. Still retaining the same charm, the black and white scenes give us a look into the creation of the play, and the story behind the story. Because of this, the film is also about actors and their process, as well as getting lost in a role and losing sight of what is real. 

This movie has so many details and you can tell that the costumers, production designers, and everyone involved in this film put a great amount of care and effort into making it. The cinematography and how the film looks is probably one of my favorite aspects of this movie. Robert D. Yeoman (cinematographer and director of photography) does an amazing job. If you have already seen the movie, then you probably know how confusing it is. I know that I walked out of the theater slightly confused. And while this is not a film for everyone, I think that everyone can walk away with something that they appreciated. However, this is definitely a film that leaves you thinking in the best way possible, and if you want to understand it then you’d probably need to watch it twice. Asteroid City is available to stream on Peacock, and it is also available to rent or buy on video on demand platforms.