keyser soze wrote:
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
This is a movie short, written, co-produced, and directed by Wes Anderson, based on the 1977 short story by Roald Dahl. It won the 2024 Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film. It's got a fun plot, a stellar cast and is visually interesting and inventive. I guess you could describe it as quirky and playful. You can see it on Netflix.
Henry Sugar (Benedict Cumberbatch) is a wealthy and self-centered bachelor, with a love of gambling (at which he is happy to cheat). He reads an old medical report about an Indian guru (Ben Kingsley,) who had learnt to see without using his eyes, through the application of yogic meditation. By practicing the guru's techniques, for three years, Henry acquires the ability to see through playing cards and thus is able to win a large sum of money playing blackjack in a casino. But the money doesn't make him happy and his whole outlook on life changes for the better.
Also in the cast are Ralph Fiennes as Roald Dahl, Dev Patel and Richard Ayoade as doctors and Jarvis Cocker appears in several small roles (in fact, most of the cast play more than one role). The look of the film is a little like a stage play, in the way the props and scenery are used... or, perhaps it would be more accurate to say it works like a puppet theatre.
I didn't know what to expect from this but I absolutely loved it. 38 minutes of joy.
9/10
I've watched this twice in the last week. It really is that good, I said.