Sunday 30 May 2010

Rushmore [1998]


Wes Anderson, one of the most highly regarded American filmmakers working today, garnered a lot of acclaim with his debut Indie feature Bottle Rocket. But it was his sophomore effort Rushmore that put him firmly and squarely on the world map. Co-written with college buddy Owen Wilson, the movie, like his other films, is quirky, irreverent, idiosyncratic and darkly funny, with latent yet palpable layers of humanism firmly embedded in the otherwise whimsical coming-of-age tale. Jason Schwartzman played the role of Max, a 15-year old student at an exclusive school called Rushmore who is exceptionally active in a horde of extra-curricular activities but for academics, to perfection. He meets, and falls heads-over-heels with the beautiful but emotionally debilitated first-grade teacher Miss Cross (lovingly portrayed by Olivia Williams). Meanwhile, an eccentric but world-weary business tycoon called Mr. Blume (played quite brilliantly by the amazing as always Bill Murray), who Max has befriended, also finds himself falling for the lady, thus setting the three for a collision course that eventually brings the them out of their self-made “little boxes”, as Pete Seeger would have said, and closer both to themselves and to each other. The combination of the breezy, unpredictable narrative, the dry and off-balancing wit and surprising emotional depth of the script, the colourful visuals and the excellent 60’s and 70’s pop soundtrack have all joined forces to make this offbeat film a cult classic among movie lovers.









Director: Wes Anderson
Genre: Comedy Drama/Black Comedy/Coming-of-Age
Language: English
Country: US

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