Every Wes Anderson film is a major event on the cinematic calendar. It’s not merely the film that is played in cinemas and you saunter along on a Friday night to see it as big as possible; a whole world emerges around it and the immersive lore draws you in with its irresistible whimsy.
The Phoenician Scheme is a film whose roots snake back to the premiere of The French Dispatch in Cannes, where Anderson mentioned to one of his many stars, Benicio del Toro (at that point a Wes World debutant), that he had another project in the pipeline that he’d be keen to collaborate on. Whisk on four years, one feature (Asteroid City), a handful of shorts (including Oscar-winning The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar), and del Toro is suited, booted and very bruised as the most charming arms dealer in cinema history, Zsa-zsa Korda.
Styled after the great Luis Buñuel (in both his style choices and his grappling with spiritual morality), Zsa-zsa is initially seen piloting a sabotaged plane as it plummets to earth. He miraculously survives the crash and then decides its high time he put his legacy in order. Enter Sister Liesl (Mia Threappleton), his estranged daughter who is now a woman of the cloth and duly appalled by her father’s activities. He explains to her his “scheme” and assures that upon completion she will be shot of him and have her birthright. With Michael Cera’s Norwegian insect scholar Bjorn along for the ride, we’re finally set for adventure.
The Phoenician Scheme is a film obsessed with ephemera, objects and art, possibly more so than any Anderson film before it. We have jumped on this intriguing design aspect and made an issue collecting together books, film, art and music. And for this issue, in the spirit of this overwhelmingly tactile, physical filmmaker, we have included an array of handmade artwork of the type where you can see the human fingerprints on each piece.
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On the cover…
We have been massive fan of the Chilean illustrator María Jesús Contreras whose colourful works offer a dazzling combination of the expressive and the absurd, and so we hoped she would answer a call for a Wes Anderson-based commission. The extraordinary piece she delivered for us which adorns the cover of issue 108 was very loosely inspired by August Renoir’s famous painting, Luncheon of the Boating Party, in reference to Zsa-zsa’s own formidable art collection and Anderson’s love of a great ensemble.
Also in this issue we have incredible new work from Maddie Fischer, Elio Moavero, Zoe Pappenheimer, Judith P. Renault, Stéphanie Seargeant and Nick Taylor.
In the issue…
Artists and Models
Hannah Strong has a long chat with the maestro himself, Wes Anderson.
Rolling With the Punches
An introspective Benicio del Toro on playing an absolute rascal and the troubles of seeing himself on screen.
Sister of Mercy
A deadpan star is born in the form of The Phoenician Scheme star, Mia Threapleton.
Pure Dynamite
Michael Cera x Wes Anderson is a match made in heaven, and the actor himself heartily agrees.
Set It Off
The production design legend, Anna Pinnock, talks building a world fit for Zsa-zsa Korda.
Rotters! Rascals! Rapscallions!
Inspired by Zsa-zsa Korda, 49 rotters plucked from the films of the 1940s.
A Wes Anderson Book Depository
A three-pronged celebration of books – real and fake – in and around the world of Wes Anderson.
In the back section…
Ben Rivers
David Jenkins speaks to Ben Rivers about his return to the Scottish wilderness for his new feature.
Daisy-May Hudson
Katherine McLaughlin talks to the writer/director about the ambiguous and sometimes tragic nature of motherhood that is the subject of her forceful debut.
Athina Rachel Tsangari
The industrious and passionate Greek filmmaker on her subtly apocalyptic new work, Harvest.
In review…
David Cronenberg’s The Shrouds
Beatrice Minger’s E.1027 – Eileen Gray and the House by the Sea
Ben Rivers’s Bogancloch
Mariano Llinás’s The Triptych of Mongongo
Sean Byrne’s Dangerous Animals
John Maclean’s Tornado
Katell Quillévéré’s Along Came Love
Andreas Dresen’s From Hilde, With Love
Daisy-May Hudson’s Lollipop
Hind Meddeb’s Sudan, Remember Us
Amalia Ulman’s Magic Farm
Rúnar Rúnarsson’s When the Light Breaks
Kei Pritsker and Michael T Workman’s The Encampments
James Griffiths’s The Ballad of Wallis Island
Athina Rachel Tsangari’s Harvest
Rebecca Lenkiewicz’s Hot Milk
Aylin Tezel’s Falling Into Place
Matt Turner and David Jenkins review eight exciting Home Ents releases; Marina Ashioti sends a postcard from the IndieLisboa film festival, and for her Sticky Gold Stars column, writes about the digital archiving efforts preserving Palestinian and trans visual culture.
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Published 20 May 2025
Little White Lies was established in 2005 as a bi-monthly print magazine committed to championing great movies and the talented people who make them. Combining cutting-edge design, illustration and journalism, we’ve been described as being “at the vanguard of the independent publishing movement.” Our reviews feature a unique tripartite ranking system that captures the different aspects of the movie-going experience. We believe in Truth & Movies.
