Review of Rushmore (1998) by Peter S — 28 Mar 2010

Watching films by Wes Anderson makes you a better person. This is a fact. Partly because they have Bill Murray in them and partly because few directors posess the flair, originality and attention to detail it takes to make a Wes Anderson film. In fact I can only think of one.

Bill Murray and Brian Cox sign up. An 18 year-old Jason Schwartzman is cast as the lead, and the mythical Rushmore Academy starts to appear. It's Max Fischer(Schwartzmann)'s sanctuary until a bizarre love triangle between Max, Herman Blume (Murray as a disillusioned industrialist) and the first-grade teaching widow Rosemary Cross (Olivia Williams) begins to take place. Max then embarks on a revenge mission having been expelled from Rushmore.

It's funny in an intensely peculiar way. It's touching and unusual. The sets are beautiful and the cinematography benefits from a slightly lower budget and is shot with care and attention. The British '60s soundtrack is classy and smart like the film. Every single performance (child actors included) is perfect and we can thank this film for starting Murray's winning streak in his golden years.

My personal favourite Anderson film. It's one I go back to on a regular basis and always find comforting and enjoyable. I'm intensley jealous of everyone involved with this film and I just want to say this to Wes:

"I always wanted to be in one of your fuckin' plays".