In Isle of Dogs, the human residents of Megasaki speak their native Japanese, but the lack of subtitles others them.
Isle of Dogs hits UK cinemas 30 March.
Neither is this helped by the fact the leader of the pro-dog movement is an American foreign exchange student (Greta Gerwig).
Wes Anderson has never been noted for his careful handling of other cultures: his 2007 feature The Darjeeling Limited faced criticisms of appropriation in its treatment of India, and his latest, Isle of Dogs, hasn’t proven any different.