I’ve only written about two dozen lists since starting Cinephile Corner, but this is already the third one ranking Wes Anderson’s movies. Maybe this just speaks to the constant output in movies by the European filmmaker, or perhaps it’s due to my equally constant intrigue in understanding and dissecting his movies.
This time around, it’s including Asteroid City – Wes Anderson’s “return to form” as many have put, and the movie that already feels like it’s recharged the auteur’s batteries for the next leg of his career. Later this year, he’s set to release The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar on Netflix. As a 37-minute long anthology of stories, I’m already debating how to cover the movie and whether to include it in the next iteration of this list (that at this rate, will be out a few weeks from now).
I love Wes Anderson’s movies – I’m not sure anything else has to be said. He’s made completely idiosyncratic, visually immaculate classics that take on a completely different tone than any other style any other director is making today. He’s completely unique and I always have to check out whatever new film he’s put together. And Asteroid City is no different, furthering his reputation for building dollhouse sets and an eclectic, expansive cast. I was in awe of it, and that will be reflected in the ranking that follows.
Anyways, here’s how I’m thinking I’d rank all Wes Anderson movies following the release of Asteroid City:
11. The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
10. Isle of Dogs (2018)
9. The French Dispatch (2021)
Wes Anderson’s films have always existed in their own meticulously crafted worlds, filled with idiosyncratic characters, symmetrical framing, and a deep reverence for storytelling. With The French Dispatch, Wes Anderson takes that reverence to the extreme, creating an anthology film structured like a literary magazine—an ode to journalism, complete with winding prose, dense narration, and rapid-fire dialogue. It’s visually dazzling and conceptually ambitious, but in its relentless pursuit of style and structure, it lacks the emotional resonance that makes Anderson’s best work so enduring.
Read our review of The French Dispatch (2021)
8. Bottle Rocket (1996)
There’s a looseness to Bottle Rocket that sets it apart from Wes Anderson’s later films. The plotting is messy, the pacing uneven, and the tone swings between comedy and melancholy without much warning. But it’s precisely that raw, unrefined energy that makes it feel authentic. While the meticulously crafted worlds of Anderson’s later films can sometimes feel like dioramas, Bottle Rocket feels like life — confusing, small-scale, and full of moments that don’t always go anywhere but still matter.
Read our full review of Bottle Rocket
7. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou may never be the most celebrated or critically lauded of Wes Anderson’s movies, but it’s undeniably one of his most distinctive. Over time, its stature has grown—not just as a quirky outlier, but as a poignant, unpredictable exploration of legacy, family, and self-reckoning. It’s a movie about a man who tries to film everything so he doesn’t have to feel anything, only to discover—too late—that the feelings are all that matter. For all its eccentricities, it sticks with you. That’s the mark of a great film, even a strange one.
Read our full review of The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
6. Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
Moonrise Kingdom is one of Wes Anderson’s most poignant coming-of-age movies, focusing on whimsical set design, an eclectic set of characters, and a love story able to be felt by all. Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward co-star.
Read our review of Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
5. Asteroid City (2023)
Asteroid City works like a charm, each detail feeling firmly in place despite the layers and layers of artifice Wes Anderson plants around every corner. His detractors may despise it, but if you’ve ever been even a smidge interested in his work up to this point, it’s certainly worth seeing – because you won’t believe its contents otherwise.
Read our review of Asteroid City (2023)
4. The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
3. Rushmore (1998)
Even if decades have passed since Rushmore first hit movie theaters, Wes Anderson’s sophomore film still has characters and tonal inflections that he hasn’t quite matched since. Jason Schwartzman proves he’s a perfect match for Wes’ desired movie-making style.
Read our review of Rushmore (1999)
2. Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
1. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
The Royal Tenenbaums not only stands as Wes Anderson’s best movie of his career, but also a defining work of the independent filmmaking scene in the early 2000s. It’s dripping with color and visual intensity, masking a story with deep themes of broken families.