I’m sure a lot of you guys have seen this video that was posted on YouTube two days ago. I thought it really related to our discussion of auteur theory. For one, many of the elements employed, especially the camera work, was spot-on for Wes Anderson films. It was so interesting to see a premise that distinctly fit the sci-fi/action genre be completely transformed to the point where I wondered if this was made into a feature length film, would it still be considered in the action genre? Or would conventions that are so typically used in Wes Anderson films cause it to fall under a different genre?

More interestingly, at the end, I was reminded of the fact that Wes Anderson himself wasn’t actually involved in making this parody trailer. The fact that someone who had clearly watched a ton of Wes Anderson films could not only identify what elements make something so characteristically “Wes Anderson” and then apply them to something completely unrelated points the signature style Wes Anderson has created for himself. Auteur theory for sure has many problems, some of which we addressed in class. But, as this parody trailer demonstrates, elements of auteur theory, such as the ability to identify a director’s signature style, are clearly active in the film industry today.