Classic - Rushmore

or: Private schooler in public school.

One word to sum it up: Whimsical.

There are two types of over-achievers at high school: the ones who spend their life studying and know everything, even if it won't ever help them in the future; and then there are the people who have to be involved with everything. The people who have to head the school productions, but usually have to also be playing a sport or organizing a certain club...you know the ones. Now, if I were to have my pick out of the two, I'd be the kid who joins in with everything...but, living where I live, there aren't funny little clubs to join with. Instead, I'm just taking part in Stage Challenge, but if I had enough talent, I wouldn't keep pretending to be smart when I'm actually really dumb. I would be like Max (Jason Schwartzman), the protagonist in Wes Anderson's early classic feature Rushmore. I would direct really flash looking plays with names like 'Serpico' and I would do fencing. Okay, fencing kinda scares me, so we'll take that off the list...

Anyway, Max is a prime example of why you can only be either an over-achiever at school or an over-achiever at extra-curricular activities, not both at the same time. He's in every club possible, in fact, he founded most of the clubs, and he also writes and directs his own intricate school plays which give him a wide reputation. But he's not so good with his school work, and of course, school is more important than everything else. So Max tries desperately to stay in the safety of his private school by trying desperately to up his grades. As he tries to do this, he is introduced to two substantial figures in his life. The first is an industrialist named Herman Blume (Bill Murray), who is disillusioned with life and becomes a good friend to Max. The second is Rosemary Cross (Olivia Williams), a first grade teacher who lost her husband and is clinging on to his memory, even though she becomes the object of both Max and Blume's affection.

Rushmore is an indeed an odd film. But it's exactly what you would expect from Wes Anderson, a film filled with originality and a look at the stranger side of life. That's a very good place to be. However, you can't be too strange without having believable characters, and that's exactly where Rushmore succeeds. Max is a character who we all feel we have known at one point in our lives. He's cocky, the very example of what some private schoolers are actually like, and, well, he's hopelessly in love with someone he can't have. Jason Schwartzman, in his first feature film, seems to take this character from being an annoying arrogant prick to being someone who you wish would just steer clear of trouble. But like most film characters, he doesn't listen. Sometimes you have to wonder why he was so in love with Rosemary. She isn't exactly the type of woman who would be the object of a young teenage boy's affection. Yes, she's pretty and she is really lovely, but she was so caught up in loving her dead husband that she cut herself off from the world. My dear Olivia Williams does a tremendous job of playing her, though, so you can see why Max fell for her.

Adding Bill Murray to the mix is always a win. His character is a strange, almost dark figure in Max's life. You can't really figure out whether he is good for Max or not, because he may take an active interest in Max because he is so bored with his own life, but he steals Max's 'true love'. So he's really the villain who just wants to be friends, which is an interesting mix, to say the least. However, Murray is as enjoyable ever, and remains a stand-out in this film. While Rushmore is clever and realistic, I felt like I never really got into it. It was cool watching a teenager heralding a revolutionary story and winning in life, but I just felt so distant from it. I don't know how that emptiness came about, because this film really has everything covered. It's funny, emotional and exciting, but it's just not there. Which is a shame, but it's even more annoying that I don't know why I didn't feel for it.

THE VERDICT: Rushmore is a charming tale of being a teenage boy who's good at everything that doesn't matter, and just about what you could expect from Wes Anderson.

What I hoped for:

What I got: