Architect Breaks Down Details of Wes Anderson's “The Grand Budapest Hotel' | Architectural Digest

Michael Wyetzner of Michielli + Wyetzner Architects joins AD to break down the hidden design details and architectural flourishes you may have missed while watching the ornately decorated fantasy world of director Wes Anderson's Academy Award-winning 2014 film The Grand Budapest Hotel.


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[jasminetaylor]

i’m very determined to believe that wes anderson would’ve made a fantastic architect

[Yelsent]

Love the side-by-side comparisons of the 30s vs 60s decor in the end. It is noticable in the film of course, but it lingers just too briefly to really let it soak in. Great video as usual AD, hopefully much more to come with this format and guest!

[henrylivingstone]

I love the grand Budapest hotel, there’s so much thought and detail that’s gone into the world building. It’s an amazing movie and it’s beautiful to watch and enjoy.

[sazennonumber]

This was a treat. Love Wes Anderson and love architecture, so double dopamine dose. Harry Potter comes to mind as a possible episode of architectural unpacking. Thank you.

[mirjamforster]

As a person who lived in the city of Goerlitz, where the hotel lobby, the bath and the dining room were shot, this clip was a special treat! Thanks alot AD!
As a child it was a must to go to that warehouse when we came on a day trip from the village, they had literally everything there and the flair was kind of glamourous. Today it's closed, sad but true.
Side Note: 'The Grand Budapest Hotel' was not the first and surely not the last movie made in Goerlitz ... parts of "Around the World in 80 Days" by Jackie Chan, 'Inglorious Basterds', 'The Reader' and many more were made there ...

[declanpetermcginty]

I LOVE when AD does these kinda videos. No work shall be done for the next 14.11 mins :)

[heatherdung]

Thanks for bringing Mr. Wyetzner back! Always enjoyed watching him! This man really has a way to keep things both captivating and informative!

[radbu]

Love this! Wes Anderson’s style is iconic!

[MurcuryEntertainment]

We actually discussed this movie, and Wes Andersons very orthographic filming style in architecture school on a great many of these principles.

[badger]

Wow, I love Wes Anderson movies even more now. I want to go back and watch them all and go frame by frame.

[emilydamoiseaux]

I so LOVE theses series of Michael breaking down architecture. I feel like i'm back at school in my favorite class. Glued to his lips, want to learn more!

[ZonieMusic]

Love the breakdown! Just wanted to point out some things I noticed:
1:09 - I believe the architect says "aqueduct" but the captions transcribe it as "aqua-dock".
2:47 - He says that in the exterior shot the "Grand Budapest" signage is not consistent, but it is. It could just be the quality of the printed movie screenshot the staff gave him, but if you take a closer look, there is the smaller version of the signage in the same place as the close-up shot. It's barely legible, yes, but it's there.
5:19 - Caught another captioning error hahaha. It's "panes", like glass panes, not "pains" nor "pans" (later in the sentence).
12:15 - Captions again. "Formica", as in the brand Formica Laminate which is used for tabletop surfaces, not "For Micah".

[marinedrive]

Interesting choice to do a deep dive into The Grand Budapest Hotel and to see its transition from a style period that celebrated beauty, into a drab edifice of the 1960s, Soviet-era modernism. Of course, it's a microcosm of what has happened to many cities around the world. In my case, a city that went from being a rather handsome and elegant Victorian/Edwardian city to a hodge-podge of drab modernist buildings and run-down vestiges of its former glory.

[theblackdaria_]

Quality content!! Please keep these coming! (And please bring back every details of NY buildings)

[andreasamato]

This series is fantastic, and explains architecture in a way that anyone can understand and appreciate it. Please continue them!

[connor]

So from this I learned that a lot of things jumped out at him, right away.

In all seriousness, this was incredibly insightful, and really shows just how determined a director Wes is. How his architectural decisions match those made in the time periods his films take place in.

[jmbwithcats]

Seeing a 35 year seasoned architect break down the architecture from the film The Grand Budapest Hotel was quite a treat, as I absolutely loved this movie.

[gaborjurina]

Wes Anderson captured the essence of Budapest, It's like he combined the Gellert hotel in Budapest, with the Budapest History Museum and the Budapest Castle Hill Funicular, one of my favourite movies of all times

[lukasvrabec]

Or as any Czech will tell, welcome to Karlovy Vary/Carlsbad and Grand hotel Pupp, where you can find everything. Magnificent bath hotel build in secession style, Ventricular, and even deer jump statue.

[graburn]

I would enjoy a break down of the Addams Family house. You could delve into the differences between the house in the New Yorker cartoons and the movies, how the house changes from movie to movie, and the houses in both the old and newer TV series and the house in the new animated movies. The house has always been my favorite "character" in the series, and I'd be interested to know your opinion on which movie or show house is most faithful to Charles Addam's illustrations.