Happy birthday, Wes Anderson. One of the most talented directors of this generation turns 54 years old today. He’s cemented himself in the annals of film history with his unique style of directing where he utilizes perfect symmetry, vibrant colors, quick panning shots, and whimsical banter that couples with plots that focus upon grief and dysfunctional family life. To celebrate his birthday, I decided to rank his ten feature films from worst to best based on my preference. When it comes to Anderson, he’s a divisive director and if you ask ten people what their favorite film is from him, you’ll receive ten separate answers.

10. Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

I don’t want to sugarcoat it. As much as I like Anderson, I find this film to be the one I like the least. Frankly, I hate it. I’m definitely in the minority here because it has a 4/5 star rating on Letterboxd, but there are many elements I dislike. Before I get into that, I did love seeing Bruce Willis in a Wes Anderson film and I thought Kara Hayward was very good. Aside from that, I found the relationship between two adolescents to be awfully problematic and uncomfortable when Sam and Suzy are dancing on the beach and feeling each other up. Maybe I need to rewatch it, but I just struggled to get past that part of the film.

9. Bottle Rocket (1996)

Anderson’s first feature film was the 1996 crime-comedy Bottle Rocket and it’s raw. But even in its raw manner, you can see the genius that Anderson has and how his writing would evolve into films like The Royal Tenenbaums and The Darjeeling Limited. The goofy dynamic among friends immediately sucks you in and you feel like you’re the fourth member of the friend group that consists of Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson, and Robert Musgrave. Just a laugh out loud funny film with a lot of friendly debauchery. It also features a great James Caan cameo that’s a lot like his character in Elf.

8. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)

“You never say, ‘I’m gonna fight you, Steve.’ You just smile and act natural, and then you sucker-punch him.” I find that The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou is a wildly underrated film in Anderson’s filmography. It incorporates one of Bill Murray’s best performances and also inserts some of the best fashion in an Anderson film. Some of the one liners make me wheeze out of laughter and the cinematography is pristine. It’s a toss up between this and Bottle Rocket for the eighth slot, but I think The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou has more redeeming qualities.

7. The Darjeeling Limited (2007)

I recently rewatched The Darjeeling Limited for a second time and liked it more the second time around. In a lot of Anderson’s films we see great chemistry from the main characters and this was probably the best example of elite chemistry between Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman, and Owen Wilson. While they don’t look like it, for an hour and a half, I believe that these three are brothers going on a spiritual journey. The films cinematography was great as they’re traveling through India and we see vibrant greens and yellows on the luxury train.

6. Isle of Dogs (2018)

Isle of Dogs is a film I really enjoy, but it gets hindered in the Wes Anderson world due to it not being on the level of Anderson’s other stop motion film, The Fantastic Mr. Fox. When I watched Isle of Dogs, I found myself often smiling because you got to see the changing attitude of a curmudgeonly character. You also got to see a boy looking for his dog that he loves. Maybe since I got my first dog I’ve changed, but I rooted for Atari Kobayashi to find his dog the whole time. Another aspect that’s super enjoyable is that we’re seeing a somewhat futuristic world where dogs are banished to a trash island and I enjoyed the concept very much.

5. Rushmore (1998)

What I like about Rushmore is that it’s one of Anderson’s few films about real people. It is Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, and The Royal Tenenbaums. With Rushmore, I fell in love with the rebellious teen narrative coupled with tones of economic struggles. The chemistry that Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray (who was an established star at this point) shared is really entertaining to see and left you wanting more. This film also made Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray household names in Anderson films. Since starring in Rushmore, Schwartzman has been in six other Anderson flicks while Murray’s been in eight.

4. The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

The Grand Budapest Hotel was nominated for Best Picture in 2014 and seems to be a consensus number one pick as fans favorite movie in Anderson’s catalog. I mentioned how important his usage of vibrant colors are and he puts that on display in this film. He assembles his most loaded cast ever with Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori, Saoirse Ronan, Adrien Brody, Edward Norton, Willem Dafoe, Jude Law, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, and Harvey Kietel. And that’s not even the full list of stars. I find the plot to be enthralling in this comedy-drama where Revolori and Fiennes go on a quest to land the Boy With Apple painting. If you want to be entertained for an hour and forty minutes and see beautiful blues and pinks, then watch The Grand Budapest Hotel.

3. The French Dispatch (2021)

A lot of Anderson fans hate The French Dispatch. Personally, I love The French Dispatch. The way Anderson breaks the film into five episodes is beautiful. He does a great job roping you in by making the first three the most entertaining as well, especially two and three: The Concrete Masterpiece and Revisions to a Manifesto. The Concrete Masterpiece has a manic Adrien Brody talking down to a stoic Benicio del Toro. Love it. And Revisions to a Manifesto incorporates what feels like a love triangle, but might not be, but I’m not convinced between Timothee Chalamet, Frances McDormand, and Lyna Khoudri. I’ve rewatched this multiple times over and every time I find new things to fall head over heels for.

2. Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

While Disney and Pixar dominated 21st Century animation, Fantastic Mr. Fox is in my top five of animated films of all time. The stop motion story of a dysfunctional fox family is whimsical, yet very deep. Every character has layers to them from Mr. Fox to Clive Badger Esq. to Ash Fox. They’re all battling their own demons from trying to fit in or even provide for their families. When I talk about Anderson using vibrant colors to catch the eye of the viewer, the best example is The Grand Budapest Hotel, but Fantastic Mr. Fox incorporates bright yellows and oranges to lock the viewer in. I love everything about this movie and it just makes me feel happy.

1. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)

Clocking in at number one is the Wes Anderson masterpiece, The Royal Tenenbaums. While a film like The Grand Budapest Hotel and Fantastic Mr. Fox have bigger casts, The Royal Tenenbaums utilizes its cast to the max. You fall in love with every character at least once and then emotionally attach to one through the films run time. The Royal Tenenbaums also has one of my five favorite movie scenes of all time and one that makes me cry every time I watch it. It’s when Luke Wilson’s character stares into the bathroom mirror and says, “I’m going to kill myself tomorrow.” He then proceeds to shave and cut his wrists into the sink while Needle In The Hay by Elliot Smith plays. An absolute tear jerker.

Another reason why I adore The Royal Tenenbaums is because it’s the end of an Anderson era. It ends the era of him making films about real people. The whole time you’re watching this, you feel like you’re watching a debilitated family. You feel the disdain the family has for Gene Hackman along with the underlying love the siblings posses. Just a great film.