Movies

Having seen many Wes Anderson films before this one, it's harder to appreciate how fresh and original Rushmore was in 1998. That being said, I can still appreciate the great characters, idiosyncratic style, and fabulous soundtrack. Bill Murray owes Anderson a debt of gratitude for reviving his career and Anderson owes Murray for bringing some heavyweight comedic talent to his film and putting him on the map. Rushmore is definitely weird, but ultimately sweet and rewarding.

I think if you're looking for a straight up comedy, you'll be disappointed. This is not an easily classifiable film, but one that I love for its unique spin on some interesting characters. I especially like the fact that Max is not completely lovable, but in the end you root for him anyway. I found all the various reconciliations quite touching, and there's an interesting emphasis on friendships between people with lots of differences. Max's sidekick is younger than him, his crush is on a teacher much older, his friendship with Bill Murray's character who could be his father. Lots of heart here.

Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman) is an odd friendless teen at a private school with lots of useless extracurricular activities. He get put on academic probation, and falls obsessively in love with elementary teacher Miss Cross (Olivia Williams). He befriends an equally odd wealthy Herman Blume (Bill Murray), the owner of a pipe company. She dates Dr. Peter Flynn (Luke Wilson) which raises the ire of Max. Then Herman becomes infatuated with the lovely teacher and Max gets kicked out of private school.These are truly uncompromisingly odd characters. They are a quirky unconventional group. They are not immediately hilarious but funny in how wacky Schwartzman gets. The dialog is sharp with a lot of unusual Wes Anderson takes. Bill Murray extends his range starting an acting relationship with Wes. It's a wonderful move forward for Wes and friends.