'Fantastic Mr. Fox' Is the Best Wes Anderson Movie You've Never Seen

Wes Anderson is known for his cunning dialogue and whimsical visuals within the live-action realm, but when he announced he was making a stop motion movie, it felt like an ancient prophecy was being fulfilled. Years of hard work resulted in The Fantastic Mr. Fox, a star-studded film that took on a children's book and added the snark and heart that made it a classic. 

Now, ten years later, we look back at this quiet masterpiece and appreciate things we might have missed at the time.   

Check out this video from the Royal Ocean Society and let's talk after the jump. 

It's crazy to think about, but in 2009, Wes Anderson was on a downward turn. 

Darjeeling Limited was not a critical darling and The Life Aquatic failed hard at the box office. 

But he was about to bounce back with a stop-motion movie that took his visual stamps and developed them even further. He also learned to use miniatures and models that would affect his movies to come, like The Grand Budapest Hotel. 

It all started here, with this underrated film. It is an emotionally resonant movie about relying on your friends and family when things go wrong. 

Things like projects not working out the way you want? 

Probably, but I am only an armchair psychiatrist. 

This is a story about a Fox trying to figure out who he is and why he belongs on this world. Fox is the villain of the farmers' lives. He steals from them and antagonizes them. 

But then we see how his narcissism kind of is destroying him inside too. And his family. As the story continues we see how each character confronts these problems in a deep way. 

In the decade since the movie came out, we have been able to confront the things Anderson wanted to explore and the world he presented. We saw him deal with the pressure put on him to be an auteur with new ideas juxtaposed against a fox who felt the pressure to be fantastic all the time.   

This exploration reveals a softer side of Anderson and allows us to connect with the characters in a way he holds back in previous films and leaned into in the movies that came after. While the film didn't do gangbusters at the Box Office it was a distinct turning point. 

As a reward, check out this behind the scenes look at The Fantastic Mr. Fox. 

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