"Rushmore" (1998) - Movie Review

It takes a while to realize what exactly the film offered at the end of it. The film expectedly had its moments of strange comic and also some drama into it. In the middle of the film, I slightly became restless on where exactly everything is going. It made some time to think the arena which the movie is trying to set foot on. With that said, “Rushmore”, directed by Wes Anderson is an independent genre funny movie in its own way. It is emotional at certain points but not that emotional and it is funny at certain points but not that funny too. This strange sense of feeling, believe it or not is what makes the movie running in weird manner of entertainment.

The story is about a young bright kid, Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman) who vents all his energy towards everything on the Rushmore School except for his studies. He is a president, vice- president and founder of various clubs and activities. He has a talent. Unfortunately to sustain in a school, the minimal academic criteria is not met by him. He is given probation. At that point of time, he gets his teenage loving crush over a first grade teacher, Miss Cross (Olivia Williams). He also meets another thinker like him but in a totally opposite way, Mr. Blume (Bill Murray). He befriends him and they both fall for Miss Cross.

The movie is the enormous responsibility over the performance of Jason Schwartzman. The Max he gives in the film is something makes it quite obvious for us that he met and understood the requirement of the character given to him. Max is a geek but does not fall in to the geek associated to academics. He is a geek towards the art of entertainment. His creativity lands and resides on plays with high budget and effects. Inside a movie they have a play and it needs a style for the character. The various glimpses of his play give the character outlining and specification spent on. He is calculative and understands the opponents. Yet he is at the young age of getting the real world experience. He understands the morality and possibility of the incoherent nature of his relationship with Miss Cross but as for any teenager it is overcome by the passion of knowing and loving a female for the first time. As an adult, Mr. Blume is the exact match for Max. The only difference in between them is the age. They have the expertise and skill necessary in doing what they want to do. Mr. Blume is hated by his own family. He does not understand the position he is in. He goes on falling for Miss Cross and of course knows to pull of the legs of Max too. Their battle against each other to claim her depicts the similarity of negativity in both of them.

Thinking back about the moments of intensity, they are intriguing. The discussion Miss Cross has with Max over their relationship in library, Max negotiating a budget for the aquarium with Mr. Blume and the confrontation of Miss Cross living in the past by Max are the ones which quite amazingly fits perfectly well in a movie of comical nature. The characters make it feel in real world and also a strange sensation of another world. Their sorrows are made bland. There are no extreme tragic or happiness. It is constant and stagnant, yet interesting.

Somewhere in the middle of this, there seems to be a gap of uncertainty in the script. I guess the movie at that point of time reminds everyone of its genre. It seems fantasy land but also real and emotional. This puts it in the awkward position either to identify it or lose it and start hating the movie. Those moments are flimsy without any strong hold. They walk fast on a hanging bridge unaware of their surroundings. But right after that, they pick themselves up and march towards the end with some slight touches of drama and comic relief.

There seems to be some heavy influence of European music as well as characters. It is well suited and elevates the mood of the film at right tones. This film is an outright independent movie with an aimless script. The script is aimless due to the character of Max and I mean it as a compliment. It is tough to write an aimless script and make it an interesting experience out of it. Max is aimlessly filled with the aim of doing what he wants to do. This way of unique presentation fits the film initially and during the end but doubts itself at some sequences. If some can avoid those or understand those to put it in a better way, this film would be a dry comical drama entertaining enough.