‘The French Dispatch’ trailer: First look at Wes Anderson’s new movie

Two years after Wes Anderson put out Isle of Dogs (2018), the American filmmaker is back with his newest feature film, The French Dispatch.

Searchlight Pictures has just released a first look at the 50-year-old director’s upcoming movie, which is officially titled The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun.

The film has been described as “a love letter to journalists” by IndieWire and is inspired by Anderson’s love for the New Yorker, according to the New Yorker.

It’s set in 20th-century France and focuses on three individual stories published by American magazine The French Dispatch, which is the director’s fictional onscreen equivalent of the iconic weekly publication.

Each of the three stories — The Concrete Masterpiece, Revisions to a Manifesto and The Private Dining Room of the Police Commissioner — are brought to life by Anderson’s star-studded cast, which includes Frances McDormand, Jeffrey Wright, Timothée Chalamet and Saoirse Ronan, among many others.

The colourful trailer opens with the introduction of longtime Anderson alum Bill Murray. The veteran actor plays Arthur Howitzer Jr., editor of the French Dispatch — a character reportedly based on New Yorker co-founder Harold Ross.

In a voiceover, J.K.L. Berensen (Tilda Swinton), staff member and writer of The Concrete Masterpiece, describes the outlet as a “factual weekly report on the subjects of politics, the arts — high and low — and diverse stories of human interest.”

Howitzer Jr. interjects in Berensen’s narration with a question for another journalist, Herbsaint Sazerac, played by fellow Anderson regular, Owen Wilson. Howitzer Jr. asks about one of the three stories: “You don’t think it’s almost too seedy this time?”

“No, I don’t,” responds Sazerac. “It’s supposed to be charming.”

Berensen’s voiceover continues, explaining how Howitzer Jr. “assembled a team of the best expatriate journalists of his time: Berensen, Sazerac, Krementz [Frances McDormand], Roebuck Wright [Jeffrey Wright]. These were his people.”

Without giving too much away, the trailer sets the scene for what to expect from each of the writers at the French Dispatch.

Throughout the trailer, viewers are later given a sneak peek at some of Anderson’s other mysterious characters, played by actors such as Adrien Brody, Benicio del Toro, Léa Seydoux, Christoph Waltz and Jason Schwartzman.

Along with the release of its trailer, Searchlight Pictures has confirmed The French Dispatch will be released on July 24 across North America.