There are some great set-pieces in it, but I don't know, I can never really get invested in that movie. And I should want to, because it's the most Bill Murray, who's the most perfect actor for Anderson's stuff. But it just feels. . . distant or cold, where Tenenbaums is driven, I feel, by warmth. Royal's fuckups are all driven by joie de vivre and overwhelming love for the family that he doesn't know how to express. Whereas Zissou feels like he's sleepwalking.

Maybe that's really it- Hackman is really the most perfect actor for Anderson, while Bill is better suited as a support or "second lead" role like Rushmore, where the melancholy he does so well with Wes doesn't drag the film down.