The Grand Budapest Hotel: Cinematography
Wes Anderson is well-known for his unique and exciting cinematography, which has helped earn him his reputation as an auteur. The Grand Budapest Hotel (Wes Anderson, 2014) is no exception to his talent.
Chapter 21 of The Grand Budapest Hotel begins with frames within frames: all of our focus centres in on the rectangle of space beneath the sign “Check-Point 19 Supply Depot”, allowing us to see the little silver car about to crawl into the smaller frame and promptly disappear. Our attention is quickly diverted away from that as it is no longer important and a 90° pan allows Zero to walk into frame, and we push in towards the manhole cover to highlight exactly where the events of the scene are about to take place. In his movies, Anderson is very successful at making it clear where the audience should be looking.
Inside the prison cell, we see deep focus cinematography. Everything is in perspective with no one favoured, implying perhaps that everyone in the cell is equal until they escape, all inmates working together in camaraderie. Anderson’s iconic symmetry is also present inside the cell, which is pleasing to the eye and thus creates a more pleasant watching experience, whilst also making the film as a whole seem more unique and memorable.
One inmate lowers a lamp down into their escape tunnel; a tracking pedestal follows it on its way down. This serves as an artistic way of sending us down into our next setting, and it becomes clear that the characters have followed us because we then see their feet coming to rest around the close-up of the light.
An iris shot using a flashlight shows the kitchen button being pressed. An iris shot is an example of old-fashioned filmmaking often used in silent film, therefore it pairs well with the Academy ratio to create an atmosphere of old-fashioned film (and reinforce time) during the 1930s sequences.
The shot crabs right to send us towards another frame within the frame, a little square elevator this time, helping our gaze to focus on the appearing inmate. After he’s grabbed the keys, we crab left back to where the shot began, so it is noticeable that the group of inmates now stand behind the barred door where once it was empty. A slightly comedic effect is garnered from this in accordance to the genre, but it also creates visual interest, makes the scene feel entertaining and satisfying.
We witness another crab to the left. Each crab movement in this scene is quicker than the last, providing increasing pace and energy to the escape sequence - the scene feels exciting and entertaining. Afterwards, this is further established by the static camera but fast flashing movement of the ladder moving past it. The quick movement adds pace; it adds silliness and comedy; it adds visual interest to keep an audience engaged. In the next shot we see of the ladder, it now moves vertically downwards rather than horizontally, creating another satisfyingly symmetrical shot. It has a shallow depth of field, focusing on the ladder, which aids the symmetry.
Attention is drawn back to the characters as they climb down the ladder with a silhouetted profile shot. Very suddenly it cuts to a wide shot from the opposite side of the ladder, allowing us to see a perspective we haven’t seen before, and draws our attention to the harsh discovery of a hostile inmate snitching on the escapees with a frame within the frame (the cell window). Forcing us to only see one perspective of the inmates climbing safely down then suddenly flipping to another perspective so we can discover the yelling prisoner means that we realise the danger at the exact time the escapees do, aligning the audience more with them and helping us to feel their panic.
Basic shot reverse shot is utilized to show the escapees and the snitch conversing. We keep cutting back to a particular shot of the pair on the ladder, where they hang awkwardly, representing their vulnerability in this moment. The cell window frame doesn’t allow us to see far into the cell and thus is used to create shock when suddenly a man inside it attacks the snitch. When his face centres itself in the window, we understand the threat has been dealt with and we’re met with a feeling of relief.
Down the ladder and down the stairs, a 90° whip pan leads to a door where it pushes forwards through the frame. The camera then moves along an axis with three different shots of their travelling past the sleeping prisoners. Every movement of the camera guides us through the route out of the prison, as if we’re going on the journey with the characters. This enhances our sympathies and fondness for them. Furthermore, the three shots along the axis each keep their focus at different heights. In the first shot, the dark silhouettes of their feet dance past near the top of the screen; in the second, they crawl low beneath beds; in the third, they’re positioned in the centre as they leap across the mattresses. Subtly, our gaze keeps darting around to keep us engaged and focused.
A low angle shot looking up slightly - with another attention-grabbing frame within a frame, the prison window - makes it seem as if they are fairly close to the ground. This sets up the joke in the next shot, when the camera remains static but the ladder keeps falling down, down, down. However, the low angle shot also creates a sense of worry for the escapees, as we now compare it to the bird’s-eye view shot we cut to, revealing just how sheer the drop is. This is emphasised by a contextualiing extreme long shot of the vast mountainside.
The camera continues following their journey as it crabs right across the side of the building, tracking their movement, and settling on a pleasingly symmetrical shot that leads into another satisfyingly symmetrical shot. It is all noticeably smooth and enjoyable to watch. Alternating bird’s-eye view and worm’s-eye view shots with a frame within the frame add to this feeling.
The first shot at the end of the prison sequence: a wide shot with Zero in the centre, resting against a backdrop of golden hay. This is representative of his loyalties to Gustave but could also imply he was the first thing Gustave was waiting to see, too.