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The Royal Tenenbaums - Criterion Collection

The Royal Tenenbaums - Criterion Collection

List Price: $19.99
Your Price: $14.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great Film
Review: I have been anxiously awaiting the release of this film, and I was ecstatic when I found out the film society at my school was holding an advanced screening. I just got back from that screening, and I'd say this is by far the most mature of the Anderson/Wilson screenplays, however not quite as good as that of Rushmore. The direction, though, was superior.

Anderson builds on the offbeat shots and cinematography that characterized Rushmore and Bottle Rocket, resulting in unquestionably one of the most visually interesting films I've ever seen. It seems like Hollywood exposure and big budgets ruins the craft of a lot of directors, but it has only made Anderson better. It is obvious he was able to give others some of the tasks he worried about for his previous two films and thus pour more of his energy into the direction.

On top of all this, his cast was, as always, top rate. I never used to respect Bill Murray, but after his performances in the two most recent Anderson flicks I love the guy. I agree with one of the previous reviewers that this is a brilliant dramedy...I personally preferred the more subtle Rushmore, but that is just personal preference. The film deals with the subject of family both humorously and seriously, often at the same time.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wes and Owen do it again
Review: I haven't enjoyed a movie so much since "Rushmore."

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Another Instant American Classic By Wes Anderson
Review: I was pretty lucky one day when I found tickets to the premiere of The Royal Tenenbaums at the Film Festival in New York City. I don't quite know how to review it. I'm not going to spoil the film for you, so read spoiler free.

This film is a dramedy but the humor is so dead pan and brilliant. I was amazed that TRT was actaully BETTER than Bottle Rocket AND Rushmore. I've never seen a drama that was this funny. During some scenes the audience was laughing so hard we couldn't really hear what was going on.

The director crams so many jokes into this film. It's something you will think about for days later! The films drama aspect is also there. I would say there is more drama in here than Rushmore, and more humor as well. Think "American Beauty" but better.

Ramones, Beatles, Elliot Smith, all part of the soundtrack. What a perfect, hilarious yet heartbreaking story. I don't know how else to describe The Royal Tennenbaums. It's an Instant American Classic. Make sure you check this movie out! It's America's new gem that deserves a Best Picture Oscar and a spot in your DVD library when it's released!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Quirky and Cerebral, but Still Warm
Review: THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS is a film I love to watch again and again. The dialogue is so perfect and the performances so understated that I find something new in the film almost every time I see it.

The Tenenbaums are a family that are far more dysfunctional than most. Royal Tenenbaum (Gene Hackman), the family patriarch, moved out of the family home and into a hotel about three years before the film opens. His wife, Etheline, however, did not divorce him and she remained in the house where she and Royal raised their three children. Royal and Etheline have the distinction of having three grown children, all of whom were prodigies, yet all of whom have grown up to be both paranoid and neurotic. Chas (Ben Stiller) was a financial whiz kid who's now afraid of even waking up in the morning. Margot (Gwyneth Paltrow) was a promising playwright, and the only adopted child, who gave up both her career and her motivation when she married the very intellectual Raleigh St. Clair (Bill Murray). Now, instead of writing award winning plays, Margot's a closet smoker instead. (If she thinks anyone in her family would care, she'd better think again.) And then there's Richie, a once up-and-coming tennis star who gave it all up because of a burning romantic love for...who else? Margot.

The plot of THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS is set in motion when Etheline announces she wants to marry her long time accountant, Henry Sherman (Danny Glover). The news that his wife wants to remarry doesn't prompt Royal to give Etheline a divorce, despite their years apart. Instead, he decides he wants to enjoy her love and affection once again, so he fakes a terminal illness and moves back into the family manse, complete with hospital bed, IV tubes, and other assorted "sick bed" paraphernalia. Coincidentally, Chas, Margot and Richie all arrive at about the same time, so the family is reunited, much to their individual and collective dismay.

THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS is a very sophisticated comedy, heavily dependent on dialogue and its biggest strength, I think, is that it always keeps the viewer a little off guard. Sometimes we don't know whether we're supposed to laugh or cry or feel empathy for this very eccentric family. And, strangely enough, as eccentric as they are, I did feel empathy for the Tenenbaums. I think this is why the film works and works so well. In creating the comedy, the writers didn't forget to create believable and likeable characters as well.

The acting is good in this film, but I thought Paltrow and Hackman turned in the best performances and that is saying something because I don't think Paltrow is an especially good actress. She captured the essence of Margot perfectly, though.

THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS is a comedy, but it's cerebral rather than physical and thinking viewers will appreciate it most. Those looking for mindless entertainment or comedic "fluff" should look elsewhere.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A genuinely wonderful movie..
Review: I usually prefer older movies, but this could possibly be my favorite movie of all time. The script it brilliant, it's hilarious and touching. There's sorrow in the humor that makes it seem very real. The movie is very observant of human nature, and very insightful. It's also accompanied by a wonderful soundtrack, that compliments the dialogue and camerawork beautifully.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: sooooooooo freakin good
Review: this is a great great movie. It's funny, touching yet stylish in the most stunningly odd way. Wes Anderson is a genius and the entire cast does an A+ job. I just love this movie soooo much!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: deeply funny, personal, and moving
Review: I love this movie so much. To me, Wes Anderson is the comic genius writer/director of the times. If you don't enjoy his stuff, you must be some kind of dumb-dumb. =) Honestly, though, I find this movie so enjoyable that it's rather baffling to hear that some people can't even get into it. You should just buy it.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: An over-abundance of style...
Review: ...and a paucity of substance. And any substance that's there is either unapologetically cribbed from the works of J.D. Salinger and Irving's "Hotel New Hampshire" (and numerous others), or is completely reliant on the inclusion of warm and fuzzy chamber pop from the 1960's to make you "feel" something that isn't there. Ho-hum. If not for the presence of Gene Hackman (a man who should have gone with his gut and avoided this one), there'd be nothing at all to recommend. Twee, retro outfits and Rolling Stones songs alone don't cut it.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Like watching standup comedians minus the punchlines
Review: I really wanted to like this film. I almost always enjoy the actors that were assembled, some of them great humorists. But in this film there is lots of buildup with no punchlines. I don't think I can remember one really funny scene or line.
Hackman, Paltrow and Huston chew up the scenary and are always a joy to watch. Ben Stiller and Bill Murray were totally wasted. Luke Wilson was the only one that was given a role in which he could cut loose, yet he doesn't have the comedic ability that Stiller does and could not do much with it.

I think the funniest moments were given by Kumar Pallana.

Who would have thought that Hackman/Stiller would yield so much fewer laughs than Deniro/Stiller. Not me.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Fresh funny and touching
Review: This is an instant classic, one of the best movies ever made. It is hilarious. It has an amazing soundtrack that flows perfectly with the movie. Great cast, all performing at the top of their game. Witty one-liners, and a touching film. I have seen it dozens of times, and enjoy it throrougly each time. Wes Anderson will make himself a legend.


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