Internationally famous oceanographer Steve Zissou (Bill Murray) and his crew set sail on an expedition to hunt down the mysterious, elusive, possibly nonexistent Jaguar Shark that killed Zissou's partner during the documentary filming of their latest adventure.

They are joined on their voyage by a young airline co-pilot, who may or may not be Zissou's son (Owen Wilson), a beautiful journalist (Cate Blanchett) assigned to write a profile of Zissou, and his estranged wife and co-producer, Eleanor (Anjelica Huston). They face overwhelming complications including pirates, kidnapping, and bankruptcy.

The character of Zissou is both a parody of and homage to French diving pioneer Jacques Cousteau, to whom the film is dedicated. Anderson shot the film in and around Naples, Ponza, and the Italian Rivieria, and is said to have been deeply inspired by the likes of The Great Gatsby and Moby Dick when crafting the films characters and themes.

Westival 2025 is Showroom Cinema's full retrospective of the director’s cinematic works across two all-day events on 4 and 18 May. All tickets £6.

Director Wes Anderson
Year 2004
Duration 1h 59m
Language English
Cast Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett