Review of Rushmore (1998) by Ted R — 13 Mar 2011

I had been meaning to see this movie since 98 which is a LONG time. However, I'm kinda glad I didn't see it when it first came out. I don't think I would have appreciated it as much. Wes Anderson's movies are weird. Some of them I like and others not so much. Some of them work for some people, but not everyone. Wes is art film with a pop culture draw/commentary. A quirkiness that is both a bit shocking and fun. This movie is the best example of this.

A love triangle movie with a twist. A kid seeking the love of a teacher that isn't even his teacher and Bill Murray as the unusual friend who comes in and adds an unusual edge to the triangle. Nobody else could really do this role other than Swartzman. His character is so over the top and endearing that no other actor could really do this effectively. The lines are quick, the jokes are dry, and the comedy is awkward/strange. However, it works.

This is a fun movie/comedy. It doesn't take itself too seriously or too lightly. It doesn't use crude humor to get a laugh and in fact seems to mock the very concept of that humor in both "teenage" movies and teenagers in general. Max is not out to get a girlfriend to have sex in the movie which is every teenage dream it appears or at least Hollywood tells us this, but instead his goal is to find what he loves to do and do it the rest of his life. So he basically does everything. Except his school work or chase after a girl. At least at the beginning. Then the teacher enters his life and a new passion comes through. This one a bit more disturbing and eccentric.

All in all a great movie and one of the best movies in 90s which I didn't seen in the 90's or the oughts 00s. But in 2011 and it was great fun.