Rushmore 1998
Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson, who co-wrote the screenplay together, carved out a unique place in the world of cinema in 1996 with their film Bottle Rocket, breathing new life into the fading realm of low-budget independent American comedies at the time. Their second film in this genre, the commendably miserable Rushmore, once again delves into the world of losers and oddballs that Anderson and Wilson so dearly love.
Actor Talia Shire’s son and Frances Ford Coppola’s nephew Jason Schwartzman portrays Max Fischer, an intellectual and boring four-eyes. Max, a scholarship student at Rushmore High School, is despised by everyone. On the verge of expulsion from school, he manages to become president of all kinds of extracurricular activities. Despite his lack of success in social relationships, Max falls in love with his beautiful teacher (Olivia Williams); he appoints troubled but wealthy Herman J. Blume (Bill Murray) as his mentor. This sophisticated screwball comedy provided Murray with a perfect opportunity to showcase his acting skills; he manages to be both deep, wounded, and funny at the same time in the film. The 1960s rock music unmistakably gives the movie, set in the present day, a sense of being set in another time.
