The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)

Directed by Wes Anderson

Essentially an homage to golden-age Hollywood rise-and-fall epics like Magnificent Ambersons but with a large dose of whimsy. The movie is packed with stylistic ideas that at the time no one had really seen put together in this way.  The writing, like that of his peers Noah Baumbach and Whit Stillman, seems most influenced by the light comedic air of 60s french film.  The retro style, very fresh and inventive at the time, is what Wes Anderson has come to be known for.  This is the original vision where it all first really came together.  And it stands as probably his best film to this day.

It actually manages to deal with some real human themes that ring very true.  The characters all yearn for some idealized past time in their past when everything seemed right.  But they learn that as much as you may want to, the past is gone, you can't go back to it.  In a way, Wes Anderson's idealized 60s/70s style mirrors the character's trip into nostalgia.  He is taking us along on his own nostalgia trip.  But like the Tenenbaum family have to eventually move on from rumination on the past, he acknowledges the past while moving on to something new.

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

Directed by Wes Anderson

This was essentially a return for Wes Anderson to the Life Aquatic style ensemble piece.  Like Life Aquatic, it's a bit all over the place with various plot threads until it ends up at a something that draws this age of adventure to a close.  Comparisons will naturally be drawn to the ensemble style of Grand Hotel (1932), the train miniatures (and similar hotel antics) of The Lady Vanishes (1938), and the uniforms from the Prisoner of Zenda (1937).  However, you may be surprised to learn it's all supposed to be based on the real life of author Stefan Zweig.