The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou is easily one of the best films of 2004. Focusing on stellar oceanographer and renowned documentarian Steve Zissou and his corky yet profound team, The Life Aquatic leaves the audience literally speechless as the credits roll. There are few words that can describe a movie like this - one that generates great laughs at times while eliciting tears at others. "A hell of a movie" only begins to tell the story behind this masterpiece of a film.<br /><br />Parallels can easily be drawn, but yet in so many ways it outshines them all. Its humorous yet grabbing dialogue are almost Tarantino-esquire. Its exquisite and unique shots differentiate the movie from many others - turning what would otherwise be a boring scene into something that at times feels like a stunningly incredible cross between the animated scenery of The Nightmare Before Christmas (indeed, the animations were done by the same person in both movies) and a presentation of Jules Verne's 20000 Leagues Under the Sea.<br /><br />The filming was extraordinarily well done, with such a huge variety of styles and tones that it boggles the mind to try to comprehend who could be able to come up with such amazing ideas.<br /><br />In The Life Aquatic, the cast is wonderful, the concept is grand, and the presentation is astounding. This movie is a true winner and will surely become known as a classic. Despite at best meager reviews by those worthless critics, everyone needs to see this movie more than once. This is one movie that words alone simply cannot describe. Out of 10, this movie scores an easy 10.