The Royal Tenenbaums is a clever movie with a fine performance from one of my favorite actors, Gene Hackman. Other than saying it's clever, though, I'm not sure what else I can add. It's not a movie about people with quirks; it's a movie about quirks masquerading as people. When Gene Hackman's character is redeemed, it's not so much unbelievable as un-earned. The film might have been better if Bill Murray, relatively subdued in his minor part, had played Hackman's character and rejected redemption.
As an example of how director Wes Anderson is clever to no apparent purpose, I point to the soundtrack, which is a wonderful melange of mostly-60s buried treasures like "These Days" by Nico and "She Smiled Sweetly" by the Stones. (He even throws in a cut from Dylan's Self Portrait; what is this s***, indeed.) While each song is welcome in my house any time, their purpose in the movie is never clear. They're good songs, and their lyrics generally fit the scenes in which they appear, but why a movie taking place in 2001 would use minor classics of the 60s is left unexplained. It does show Anderson's good taste in music, and perhaps that's it: everything about The Royal Tenenbaums demonstrates the excellence of the filmmakers, but precious little convinces me I'm watching a movie that lives up to that excellence.
As an example of how director Wes Anderson is clever to no apparent purpose, I point to the soundtrack, which is a wonderful melange of mostly-60s buried treasures like "These Days" by Nico and "She Smiled Sweetly" by the Stones. (He even throws in a cut from Dylan's Self Portrait; what is this s***, indeed.) While each song is welcome in my house any time, their purpose in the movie is never clear. They're good songs, and their lyrics generally fit the scenes in which they appear, but why a movie taking place in 2001 would use minor classics of the 60s is left unexplained. It does show Anderson's good taste in music, and perhaps that's it: everything about The Royal Tenenbaums demonstrates the excellence of the filmmakers, but precious little convinces me I'm watching a movie that lives up to that excellence.