Royal Tenenbaums, The (2001) | Review #1

Starring: Gene Hackman, Angelica Huston, Ben Stiller, Gwyneth Paltrow, Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson, Danny Glover, Bill Murray
Director: Wes Anderson

Rating: R

Studio: Touchstone

Review Posted: 12.29.01

Spoilers: Minor

Rating: 3.5/4

By Craig Younkin.

The Holidays are about spending time with family, but if you need a break from yours or just want to laugh at a family stranger than your own, then "The Royal Tenenbaums" is the perfect solution.

Director Wes Anderson and co-writer Owen Wilson are two guys rapidly emerging in the Indie circuit. Their other films include "Rushmore" and "Bottle Rocket," but this is their funniest and most accomplished film yet.

Anderson and Wilson's comedy style is very different from that of other filmmakers in the way they mold their characters into intelligent, but at the same time, abnormal and unreal people. The comedy relies on how incredible the characters can be, and here they are all too genuinely quirky to pass up on.

The story takes a look at the Tenenbaums, a rich and educated family with its share of problems. Unfolding in storybook fashion, Alec Baldwin narrates the tale of a family torn apart and the effort to return to normal, if normal was ever a word to describe the Tenenbaums.

The film begins with the divorce of Royal (Gene Hackman) and Etheline (Anjelica Huston) Tenenbaum. In the divorce, Etheline gets control of their three children while Royal manages to distance himself farther and farther from them by making all the wrong moves.

The Tenenbaum children are a gifted trio of kids, but instead of nurturing their abilities, Royal has done just the opposite. His children consist of Chas (played as a grown up by Ben Stiller), a business smart kid who grows up to be a safety nut due to the death of his wife. He has the biggest resentment toward his father because he stole money from him and also shot him in the hand with a BB gun.

The next child is Margot Tenenbaum (the grown up is played by Gwyneth Paltrow), who was an award winning playwright at a young age, but has never been directly accepted by Royal as a full member of the family due to the fact that she was adopted. As a result, she spends her adult years being both depressed and sexually promiscuous.

The last child is Richie Tenenbaum (played as an adult by Luke Wilson), a fantastic tennis player who won three national tournaments before he was twenty, but choked on the court one day and never recovered. He also has a thing for Margot, but must compete with his drug-addicted best friend (Owen Wilson).

Twenty-two years later, they all live problematic lives. Most of all, Royal is a terrible father figure for them. Hoping to right the wrong he has caused, and also to stop the wedding of Etheline to her accountant (Danny Glover), Royal brings the family back together with the news that he is dying; an attempt that he hopes will re-connect them. Based on their resentment towards him, it won't be as easy as he thinks.

Anderson and Wilson's script is about the values that hold every family together. It stresses points such as forgiveness, love, and respect. It does so by never breaking out of its comic awkwardness. It's inventively told, and oddly enough, it does manage to strike an emotional cord or two.

The cast is also a brilliant selection of talented comic and dramatic actors. Their best choice happens to be Gene Hackman. He portrays the inconsiderate Royal in a hilarious way, but then surprisingly later on makes an incredible transformation into a huggable good guy with a heart of gold.

Ben Stiller and Gwyneth Paltrow are also two very funny standouts in a film that ranks among one of the best comedies of the year.

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