The Grand Budapest Hotel and the Permanence of the Past

Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel begins and ends in a graveyard. The connotation of this mis-en-scéne element of setting is one of death, or remembrance, encouraging viewers to begin and end the film on this note. For a film that is about a girl remembering a dead author, who’s remembering the rags-to-riches owner of a hotel, who’s remembering the owner that shaped him on that journey, this motif is very fitting. Anderson again uses visual elements of mis-en-scéne to emphasize this multi-stage passage of time, most notably through the aspect ratio of the screen. This decision to use the most popular aspect ratio of whatever time the action is occurring in creates a constant feeling of nostalgia as we watch the bulk of the action in 1932, framed in 1.37:1. I find this nostalgia serves as a way to prevent us from getting entirely lost in Gustav’s dynamic tale- the aspect ratio is the one consistent mis-en-scéne decision across every second of the film, and is a way to consistently remind us this is a tale of a man who must already be dead, told to be narrated by another who has also already passed.

This permanence of the film’s outcomes is additionally highlighted through the continuous constraints placed upon the framing of the scene- whether that be the elevator so frequently used in the hotel, the train, the death that occurs in the confessional, or the jail. Placing so much of the action in these constraints intensifies this reminder of us being in the past- the events we’re seeing have already conspired and, despite the narrative tension built, will not change. One could even link the memory box thumped upon the table full of edited and edited again wills, which is in a sense the summation of Madame D’s life, as being reenacted again to show how Gustav’s life, once looked at posthumously can similarly fit into a box or narrative- or in this case, various containers.

I find the Grand Budapest Hotel terrifically explores the legacy one leaves behind, like Gustav’s impact on Zero, Madame D’s tangible will, the tale Zero tells the author, or even the ZZ fascist rule. These lives only remain through narratives, often marred with nostalgia or unreliable narrators. Much like how history is written by the victors, The Grand Budapest Hotel uses mis-en-scéne to inquire into who tells our story, and by what moral metric we should base our decisions in the present on, like Gustav remembered as nobly dying for Zero vs. the ZZ rightfully being remembered as villains. To anyone examining our legacy, the outcome is already written, so what narrative of ourselves do we want to spin through our decisions?

3 thoughts on “The Grand Budapest Hotel and the Permanence of the Past

  1. Hi Katie! I truly enjoyed reading your review. Thank you for your unique take on how the film uses boxes to compartmentalize. Boxes could be full of memories or surprises, even both. After all, to remember is to live again. As you said, the chapters of this film serve as narratives of Gustave’s life that can fit into these “boxes”, that can be opened or revisited with nostalgic purposes. Like Zero recounting passionately the adventures he embarked on with Gustave, he opens up these boxes that surprise both him and the viewer, evoking a response from both. Zero sheds some tears as he remembers his beloved Agatha. The viewer is immersed in this powerful tale of bravery, loyalty, and love.

  2. Hi Katie! I loved your analysis and especially how you connected the aspect ratio to the theme of nostalgia. Wes Anderson is truly an expert in using subtle details such as aspect ratios as well as symmetry to evoke a certain emotion from the audience. This also reminds me, much like the aspect ratio that kept changing throughout the film, there was also a constant change of symmetry that also represented the characters’ relationships with one another. For example, at the beginning of the film, Zero was merely a lobby boy who is subservient to Gustave; therefore, he was portrayed as a blurry figure in the background while Gustave occupied most of the frame. However, as the narrative continued, Gustave and Zero’s relationship also evolved, and their relationship evolved into a trusted friendship/partnership. They were equals, and the symmetry of the two characters both sharing half of the screen reflected that.

  3. Hi Katie, I found your review so insightful! I think it’s particularly interesting that something like aspect ratio, which I sometimes don’t even consciously notice, is a huge decision for directors and cinematographers to consider. Throughout the movie, I realized that the changing aspect ratios played a crucial role in orienting the audience in the time period in which certain scenes are set, and the aspect ratios are meant to be representative of each time period.
    I agree that legacy is a big theme of The Grand Budapest Hotel, as the story is being recounted through multiple narrators. What truths being presented to us (the audience), or to the girl through the book, or from Zero to the author have actually been modified or changed? It brings into question how our personal histories will be retold and passed on, and how we can ensure our truths are preserved.

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