The Royal Tenenbaums - Benjamin Hilton

Title/Year: The Royal Tenenbaums, 2001

(IMDB The Royal Tenenbaums)

Director/Birth Country/Year Born: Wes Anderson; USA, 1969
(IMDB Wes Anderson)

Budget: $21 million (estimated)

(IMDB The Royal Tenenbaums)

Gross: $71,441,250 (world wide)
(IMDB The Royal Tenenbaums)

Synopsis: A trio of former child prodigies is reunited with their eccentric father who has a terminal illness.

Main Character/Arc: Royal Tenenbaum, seeking to rejuvenate and retain the family he dreams of.  Separated from his family for 22 years. Failed as a father.

Camera/lighting/editing technique: Anderson used lots of shots where the characters are either looking into or directly facing the camera.  He also used continuous shots where the camera has lots of movement to keep up

Historical Relevance/ Recognition: The screen play was nominated for an Academy award.

(IMDB The Royal Tenenbaums)

Random fact, Etc.: This is the first film Wes Anderson didn’t shoot in Texas.
(IMDB The Royal Tenenbaums, Did You Know?)

1.  Wes Anderson grabbed the attention of film critics before audiences with the release of his first film.  Bottle Rocket’s story is original and has a theme that holds strong.

(IMDB Bottle Rocket)

2.  Anderson used techniques such as rostrum camera and double take shots.  These are camera techniques that are not new, but were used in a method that was new and aided in the story.

(IMBD Wes Anderson)

3.   Wes Anderson, though he’s said “I want to try not to repeat myself,” has distinct features in each of his films that can be tied together.  All of his stories are highly original, allowing him to keep continuity between the movies.

(IMDB Wes Anderson)