The Royal Tenenbaums - R

Quirky extended-family story with dry adult humor.

Rating: R for language, sexual references, and mature themes Studio: Disney Directed By: Wes Anderson Cast: Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Ben Stiller Running Time: 109 minutes Release Date: 12/21/2001 Genre: Comedy

Common Sense Note

Parents need to know that this movie has very mature material including a graphic and bloody suicide attempt, sexual references and situations (adultery and a possible romance between adopted siblings), and painful issues of betrayal and deception. There are references to a tragic death. An adopted child is made to feel like an outsider. A character has a serious drug abuse problem. Some people may find the light-hearted treatment of these issues offensive and kids will probably miss the dry humor completely.

Families can talk about whether this wild exaggeration of family communication problems can be of help to families who are struggling to connect to each other. What can parents do to give gifted children the stimulation and support they need without making them feel isolated from friends and family? Eli says to Royal "I always wanted to be a Tenenbaum," and Royal responds, "So did I." What does that mean? Why did such accomplished children become such fragile adults? Why did Chas react to his wife's death by becoming obsessed with safety?

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Nell Minow

Just about everything is a little off-kilter in this quirky story about a wildly dysfunctional family.

A prologue tells us that Royal (Gene Hackman) and Etheline (Anjelica Huston) had three children, all of whom were so prodigiously accomplished while still in grade school that they were the subject of books, including one by their mother.

It seems that they lived their lives backward, though. As children, they easily surpassed adults with their astonishing achievements in the arts (Margot, Gwyneth Paltrow, was a playwright), sports (Richie, Luke Wilson, was a tennis champion), and business (Chas, Ben Stiller, was a financial wizard). But as adults, they have reverted to childhood, and either can't or won't perform anymore. One by one, they return home, moving into their old bedrooms. And then Royal, long estranged from the family, tells Etheline that he, too, wants to come home, to make his peace with the family before he dies of cancer.

The result is a crackpot blending of J.D. Salinger's stories about the gifted Glass children, the classic Kaufmann-Hart play You Can't Take It with You, and a made-for-TV movie called The Gathering, in which a tough old rich guy played by Ed Asner visits his long-estranged but never-divorced wife, played by Maureen Stapleton, and asks her to persuade their grown children to come together for Christmas.

But this is very far from the glossy but conventional Gathering. It takes place in a whacked-out fantasy version of Baltimore, where hotels employ uniformed elevator operators, decrepit taxis literally labeled "Gypsy Cab" show up whenever someone needs to go somewhere and there is a YMCA on "375th Street." The production design is brilliant, especially the house (the children's bedrooms are magnificent) and the hotel.

Director Wes Anderson and actor Owen Wilson (who plays the Tenenbaum's neighbor, Eli) wrote the screenplay, and like their previous collaborations, Bottle Rocket and Rushmore, this movie defies categorization, combining elements of satire, fantasy, comedy, tragedy, farce, and drama. That's a combination that will make some audiences uncomfortable, but will seem to others to be the best possible way -- maybe the only way -- to truly convey a story of family conflict. The result is messy, even outrageous, but reflecting a singularity of vision that is welcome in a mainstream studio film starring three Oscar-winners.

Mature viewers who enjoy this movie will also enjoy Rushmore and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Every family should see the Best Picture Oscar-winning You Can't Take It with You, starring Jimmy Stewart.

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Content		CS	adults	kids
Content
Sexual Content Sexual references, including adultery and technical incest (adopted siblings).
Violence Graphic and bloody attempted suicide. One character loses a finger. A dog gets hit by a car. One friend stabs another. The death of a spouse/mother in a plane crash is mentioned.
Language Some strong language.
Message
	Social Behavior Inter-cultural relationships. Royal lies to family about having a terminal illness in order to see his family.
	Commercialism Fast food takeout, Gypsy Cab Co.
	Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco Characters drink and smoke. One character is addicted to drugs and drives recklessly while high, another has been smoking secretly since she was a tween.