All 12 Wes Anderson movies, ranked from worst to best
Including The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, available on Netflix.
From 2000 classics that defined a film-addict generation to one of the best movies of 2023, these are Wes Anderson's best movies, spanning almost three decades of fascinating, gorgeous filmmaking.
Yes, most of Anderson's movies feel part of the same pastel-coloured, perfectly symmetric universe he's become known for. But there's more to his fascinating body of work than meets the eye.
While he's made a career out of movies featuring gorgeous, dreamlike set designs, Anderson's films aren't drama-free fantasies. His characters get hurt (even if their faces don't show emotion), and his stories explore dysfunctional family dynamics, friendship, love and death.
Behind Anderson's style — so recognisable that it was turned into a viral TikTok phenomenon — there's a riveting point of view that moviegoers keep craving.
Luckily, there's more to come after the Benedict Cumberbatch-led Netflix film The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, which is available on Netflix. Anderson is also working on a new project starring Benicio del Toro and Barbie's Michael Cera.
While we keep grasping all the meanings behind Anderson's beautiful Roald Dahl adaptations on Netflix, here's a worst-to-best ranking of all Wes Anderson movies — from his feature debut Bottle Rocket to recent works like Asteroid City.
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou is one of the weakest Wes Anderson movies, even if its art design is decidedly eye-popping.
The story follows famous oceanographer Steve Zissou (played by Bill Murray), who has sworn vengeance against the shark that killed a member of his crew. In his sea travels, Zissou deals with all sorts of characters, from pirates to his estranged wife.
Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett, Anjelica Huston, Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum, Michael Gambon and more complete the cast.
Zissou is both a parody of and a tribute to French diving pioneer Jacques Cousteau, who opened the door to a fascinating in-colour aquatic world never seen before.
However, the film leans way too much on the whimsical and not enough on delivering a meaty story. It's busy, but it doesn't say much at all.
Watch now: Disney+ | Prime Video
Bottle Rocket (1996)
Wes Anderson's first movie shows his raw potential, his recognisable style still a work in progress. It also marked his first collaboration with college friend Owen Wilson, who debuted as an actor in this film.
Based on Anderson's 1994 short film, Bottle Rocket follows a group of young men who embark on a road trip hungry for crime. However, they don't know much about being criminals, so their plan proves more difficult than they anticipated.
For those who fell in love with Anderson for his symmetry-obsessed, polished visual style, this movie might be quite surprising. It's uneven, yet fascinating, as the filmmaker was still finding himself.
For those not too keen on Anderson's usual style, though, Bottle Rocket might be the one to watch.
Watch now: Prime Video | Microsoft Store | Apple TV+
The French Dispatch (2021)
Welcome to Ennui-sur-Blasé, a fictional French town where American newspaper The French Dispatch collects the most fascinating, attention-grabbing stories around.
Here, Wes Anderson uses a big frame to contain different tales, which include a violent prisoner becoming a sensational painter, a student riot covered by an infatuated journalist and a policeman recalling a kidnapping.
The French Dispatch might have the most impressive cast in all Wes Anderson's work — with Owen Wilson, Benicio del Toro, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Léa Seydoux, Frances McDormand, Timothée Chalamet, Christoph Waltz, Jeffrey Wright, Edward Norton, Saoirse Ronan, Elisabeth Moss and more bringing three quirky tales to life.
As with any story formed by different stories, some work and others don't. The French Dispatch has a strong start, but the movie loses strength as it plays out. Such a pity.
Watch now: Disney+ | Prime Video
The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody and Jason Schwartzman play three estranged brothers trying to work things out as they travel to India. A year after their father's funeral, they think a spiritual journey is the best course of action for their tragically dysfunctional family.
The movie is filled with beautiful colour palettes and stunning landscapes captured on location in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It's also true to Anderson's style, with a famous slow-mo sequence many fans include in their personal rankings of Wes Anderson's best moments.
Sadly, The Darjeeling Limited is far from perfect. Its privileged, self-absorbed protagonists aren't as charming as other Anderson's creations, and the plot is confusing. Also, it has been fairly criticised for falling into Orientalism, with its Western-driven views on India's culture and religion.
Watch now: Disney+ | Prime Video
Isle of Dogs (2018)
Wes Anderson's stop-motion work is stunning, and Isle of Dogs is a testament to that. Also, it might have some of the funniest moments in his filmography.
Due to the canine flu, the dogs of Megasaki City are exiled to Trash Island, condemning them to a miserable life. When 12-year-old Atari Kobayashi travels to the island to find his dog, an epic journey to defy the corrupt Mayor Kobayashi and his unfair politics begins.
As with The Darjeeling Limited, Isle of Dogs faced accusations of cultural appropriation, with many criticising its depiction of Japanese people.
Anderson replied to the accusations (via EW): "The movie is a fantasy, and I would never suggest that this is an accurate depiction of any particular Japan."
Watch now: Disney+ | Prime Video
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (2023)
Benedict Cumberbatch stars in one of Wes Anderson's latest projects, The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, which is adapted from a 1977 short story written by Roald Dahl.
Anderson's love for Dahl's work was well known, and this new short film (it runs for only 41 minutes) proved it again.
The story follows a rich man known as Henry Sugar, who finds a mysterious journal and learns about a guru who can see without using his eyes. (The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar isn't entirely fictional, as one of its characters is partly real.)
Alongside this fabulous short film, Netflix released three other even shorter, Dahl-inspired films directed by Anderson: The Swan, The Ratcatcher and Poison.
Watch now: Netflix
Asteroid City (2023)
Wes Anderson's latest, Asteroid City, might also be one of his best. It's a captivating mix of Western, sci-fi, comedy and arthouse cinema.
The movie starts with a black-and-white TV special showing the making of a Broadway play, in which the audience will be immersed for most of the film. Set in 1955, the play follows various characters fighting their own demons as they get quarantined in a US desert town due to an unexpected encounter.
Themes like isolation and otherness are explored in the story, highlighting Anderson's usual outsider-type characters trying to make sense of an extremely chaotic existence.
Ultimately, Asteroid City is about how fictional stories help us find meaning (sometimes with symmetric images and pastel colour palettes).
Watch now: Prime Video | Microsoft Store | Apple TV
Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
Wes Anderson's cutest romance can be found in Moonrise Kingdom, which might be why it's a total fan favourite.
Set in the sixties, the plot follows two 12-year-old kids, Sam and Suzy, who connect at a summer camp and decide to run away together. They're from different worlds: He's an orphan, and she has a wealthy family. But this Romeo and Juliet are willing to fight for their young love.
They create their own camp, called Moonrise Kingdom, as a group of adults led by Bruce Willis’s Captain Sharp chase them down to bring them back to their respective homes.
A sweet and heartwarming teenage romance, Moonrise Kingdom explores the end of childhood and the beginning of feelings often too complex to put into words.
Watch now: Prime Video | Microsoft Store | Apple TV
The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
This movie put Wes Anderson on the map, as it became a generation-defining indie film for the early 21st century.
In his last great role on screen, Gene Hackman plays patriarch Royal Tenenbaum, who reunites his three children (Ben Stiller, Gwyneth Paltrow, Luke Wilson) to tell them he is dying.
Unfortunately, the Tenenbaum kids are already dealing with their own traumas. Formerly considered child prodigies, they're now adults drowning in personal troubles and failed professional promises.
The film is funny, visually beautiful and star-studded, as Anderson movies usually are, but it also features some of the filmmaker's most devastating scenes.
For many fans, The Royal Tenenbaums has always been Anderson's unmatched masterpiece.
Watch now: Disney+ | Sky Cinema | Prime Video
Rushmore (1998)
Before his focus shifted to dysfunctional family dramedies in the noughties, Wes Anderson shone with this coming-of-age comedy starring another of his key collaborators, Jason Schwartzman.
Consolidating the classic Anderson archetype, Schwartzman stars as ambitious teenager Max Fischer, who falls in love with a beautiful first-grade teacher (played by Olivia Williams). However, he has more competition to win her heart than he expected.
Rushmore is quirky, clever and utterly charming, although also a bit silly. And in the big picture of Wes Anderson's oeuvre, it's different, refreshing and unashamedly fun.
Watch now: Disney+ | Prime Video
Fantastic Mr Fox (2009)
Wes Anderson's love for writer Roald Dahl is no mystery, and that might be the key to achieve a pitch-perfect adaptation like Fantastic Mr Fox. Having George Clooney and Meryl Streep voicing the main characters also helps.
Showcasing for the first time Anderson's fascinating stop-motion style (in conjunction with animation director Mark Gustafson), the story follows Mr Fox as he suffers the consequences of stealing his farmer neighbours' food. His family is hunted down and pushed to live deep underground, forcing Mr Fox to use his skills for survival.
Anderson added his own flavour and visual brand to Dahl's work, resulting in a great match the filmmaker hopes to repeat with Netflix's The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar.
Watch now: Netflix | Disney+ | Prime Video
The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
Wes Anderson is at his best in The Grand Budapest Hotel, an Oscar-winner extravaganza full of colour, quirky characters and extravagant settings.
Set in a popular European ski resort in the 1930s, the film follows the very different yet equally eccentric guests of the Grand Budapest Hotel, supervised by concierge Gustave H (Ralph Fiennes). When a wealthy guest dies, an investigation to determine who killed her commences.
Electric and intoxicating, this movie felt like the pinnacle of Anderson's career — and not just because of the awards or the notable box-office grosses.
This is an Andersonian rollercoaster we would gladly ride over and over again.
Watch now: Disney+ | Prime Video
Mireia (she/her) has been working as a movie and TV journalist for over eight years. Based in the UK, she is a former deputy movies editor at Digital Spy, and previously worked for the Spanish magazine Fotogramas. Mireia's work has been published in other outlets such as Esquire and Elle in Spain, and WeLoveCinema and GamesRadar+ in the UK. She is also a published author, having written the essay Biblioteca Studio Ghibli: Nicky, la aprendiz de bruja about Hayao Miyazaki's Kiki's Delivery Service.
During her years as a freelance journalist and film critic, Mireia has covered festivals around the world and has interviewed high-profile talents such as Kristen Stewart, Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal and many more. She's also taken part in juries such as the FIPRESCI jury at Venice Film Festival and the short film jury at Kingston International Film Festival in London. LinkedIn
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