The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (2023)
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar Review
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar is a 2023 short film directed by Wes Anderson and starring Benedict Cumberbatch. It’s a wonderful flick.
Henry Sugar, a wealthy man, decides to take on an extraordinary challenge – he wants to master an extraordinary skill in order to cheat at gambling games. This fantasy story was based on the titular short story by Roald Dahl. I am not a fan of Wes Anderson, but I do find his style a perfect fit for the world of Dahl’s literature. Also, he is such a creative, stylish filmmaker whose focus on visuals makes him a perfect fit for short form filmmaking, which is why I prefer them over his feature efforts.
This story is lovely. It ends on such an uplifting, inspiring note that was wonderful to witness, especially today. There is so much warmth and charm to this world and its characters that it’s easy to forgive the movie for its somewhat simplistic storytelling. The acting is also sublime with Benedict Cumberbatch being so well cast. The highlights, though, are Ben Kingsley in a couple of very interesting roles and Dev Patel, who stole the film with his clever, amusing line delivery.
You see, the characters here narrate the story to us as viewers while still being the characters in the plot themselves. This was a truly inspired choice that, although odd at first, was genuinely artistic and original that you have to appreciate it. The production design is also mesmerizing and a character in and of itself as so many of these coulisses were gorgeous to behold. The movie was very theater-like in the usage of said imagery, but it fits the narrative world and style of Dahl’s stories like a glove. The score, cinematography and costumes all did wonders to make the movie feel like a genuine fairy tale.
