Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3894 in DVD
• Released on: 2002-12-02
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, French, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Dutch, Italian
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 108 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Wes Anderson's satirical yet tender tragicomedy The Royal Tenenbaums is a defiantly offbeat movie, but its sheer originality makes it a winner. As Philip Larkin famously said, "They fuck you up, your mum and dad". Well, it's Dad, the opulently named Royal Tenenbaum himself (Gene Hackman in twinkly mode), who gets all the blame here. The precocious achievements of the Tenenbaum offspring are amusingly documented: teen tycoon Chas (a perpetually snarly Ben Stiller), tennis star Richie (Luke Wilson, alienation personified in his Björn Borg get-up) and Margot--adopted and never allowed to forget it--a prize-winning playwright by ninth grade (Gwyneth Paltrow lurking under a ton of eyeliner and a sulky pout). Then there's Eli Cash (Owen Wilson), the kid from over the road who always wanted to be a Tenenbaum and nowadays makes his living writing trashy but successful Westerns.

After two decades of going their own way, to unfailingly disastrous effect, the Tenenbaums find themselves reunited in their old house, as idiosyncratic and illogical a place as the family itself, with Etheline Tenenbaum (touchingly played by Anjelica Huston) about to marry her accountant, Henry Sherman (Danny Glover). The action loops forward and backward, with the background detail on each character beautifully rounded out by narrator Alec Baldwin. This, and the device of dividing the film into chapters, gives it the feel of a fairy story, and like the best in the genre, it has a satisfying, if not entirely happy, resolution.

On the DVD: The Royal Tenenbaums comes with extra features that really do add to the enjoyment of the film. These range from the whimsical (a gallery of all the fictitious book and magazine covers that involve the Tenenbaum family and a slide show of behind-the-scenes photos by set-photographer James Hamilton) to the enlightening (a 26-minute film about writer/director Wes Anderson, his ideas behind the movie and an insight into his way of working, which is illuminating particularly for the sheer detail of his vision--if he's a control freak, he comes across as a nice control freak). There are also brief interviews with the main players, excerpts from Anderson's annotated script pages and background details on the artwork that appears in the film by Miguel Calderon and Eric Chase Anderson (brother of Wes). Less than two minutes of deleted scenes is hardly exciting, though the offbeat humour of the "Peter Bradley Show" is a distinct plus. --Harriet Smith

Special Features
Widescreen 2.35:1 Anamorphic
Dolby Digital 5.1
Soundtrack languages: English, French, Italian
Subtitles: French, English, Italian, French, Dutch, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Finnish
Outtakes
Theatrical trailers
"With the Filmmaker" portraits by Albert Maysles
Exclusive interviews and behind-the-scenes footage
"The Peter Bradley Show" featuring interviews with additional cast members
"The Art of the Movie" still photographs, murals and paintings, a book and magazine covers
Collectable insert including Eric Anderson's drawings

Synopsis
In their youth, the Tenenbaums--an eccentric New York family--were extraordinary. They were all geniuses. Royal Tenenbaum (Gene Hackman) was a successful litigator. His wife Etheline (Angelica Huston) raised their children to be ambitious, entrepreneurial, and creative--then published an acclaimed book about her child-rearing techniques. Adopted daughter Margot (Gwyneth Paltrow) was a gifted playwright. Son Chas (Ben Stiller) was a masterful businessman with a taste for real estate. And the other son, Richie (Luke Wilson), was a natural tennis champ. However, when Royal packed up his life and left his wife and his family in a cloud of betrayal, everything fell apart. Twenty years later, the Tenenbaums are a dejected and alienated bunch, each having found that their early successes did not carry over into adulthood. When washed-up Royal learns that his distant wife Etheline, who has become an archaeologist, may remarry, he feigns illness as an excuse to reunite with his estranged family.
From Wes Anderson, director of RUSHMORE, this film is full of quirky comedy that will have audiences reeling and reflecting simultaneously. The brilliant script is impeccable with choppy, intentionally awkward language delivered with dry wit by the well-appointed (almost too good to be true) cast. Dramatic sets are emphasized by the film's masterful orchestration of scene changes and chapter separations. The photography beautifully captures a faded, vintage 1980s New York. And the eclectic soundtrack features much-loved tunes by Nico, The Velvet Underground, The Clash, and the Vince Guaraldi Trio.

Customer Reviews

Anderson's best
I expect many will dismiss Anderson's Magnus Opus as one of two things. `Quirky' or `insubstantial'. They are, in no uncertain terms, wrong. Yes the film is offbeat, innovative and original, quirky even, and yes the production design is near saturated with wondrous stylistic flourishes. But, crucially, this is not a case of style obscuring substance. This is style begetting substance. For every Dalmatian mouse, we get a fantastically realised character, for every kitsch tableau, we get a wonderful moment of human interaction. The Royal Tenenbaums is a movie steeped in acute, ingenious, absurd observation. It's a deceptively complicated fable of human loss, grief and redemption, played out with beguiling subtlety by its all star cast.
The screenplay (written by Anderson with long time collaborator Owen Wilson) somehow manages to give each character of the large ensemble cast immeasurable depth . It's a stunning achievement considering the relatively scant screen time each actor gets. When Royal (played by a twinkling Gene Hackman) confronts his estranged wife Ethel (Angelica Houston) , with the news of his imminent death it's a wonderful moment. With approximately eleven lines of dialogue, we are given an astonishing insight into the two characters. A lesser film would struggle to impart so much in its entire running time. Not only is this sequence informative, it is both moving and laugh out loud funny. It's a combination that the film pulls out of the bag often.
Thematically The Royal Tenenbaums is supercharged. The witty banter, and recognisably comic actors conceal very dark undercurrents. Divorce, suicide, drug abuse, incestuous relationships and death all are brought to the fore, thinly veiled by sparkling delivery and a rose tinted camera lens. Surprisingly amongst Stiller, Hackman, Murray and Glover it is actually Luke Wilson who emerges as the films star. It's perhaps his most impressive performance and suggests that he is capable of depths that his brother couldn't dream of. As tragic ex-tennis player Richie Tenenbaum he shoulders most of the film's heavy lifting. It is he who embodies the film's darker subtexts, yet he does so in a way that is entirely affable, warm and affecting. This approach is synonymous with the film as a whole, and those who accuse Anderson of producing a film altogether too cutesy have clearly just not paid enough attention. His amalgamation of offbeat design and darkly comic tragedy makes for a film that is both sparkling and effectively introspective.
Not only is The Royal Tenenbaums armed with an acute, deceptively profound script, and blessed with fantastic performances, it is graced with a soundtrack so perfect one is tempted to break down and weep. The Rolling Stones and The Beatles rub shoulders with Erik Satie and Elliott Smith, whilst The Ramones and The Clash do battle with Bob Dylan and Nick Drake. Like the film it's an eclectic mix, and its possibly the best soundtrack since Pulp Fiction. With so much going for it, it's hard to see how the haters could be so blind. There's not a character who's not endearing, there's not a line that's wasted. Suffused with delightful styling, impeccable comic timing and sumptuous melancholia, the film is wry, glowing, and finally, in its own very particular way, life affirming. See it, then see it again.

My favourite film of 2002
What a wonderful film. Poignant, funny and eccentric, I absolutely loved it. The cast are perfect, delivering finely understated performances without a hint of A-List ego. Gene Hackman is at his finest, but Gwyneth Paltrow and Luke Wilson are also tremendous.

It's also worth mentioning the film's soundtrack, as the song choices contribute heavily to the feel of the film. Songs by Nico, Dylan, the Velvet Underground and Nick Drake lend a dreamy timeless quality while certain characters and episodes benefit hugely from the music - Eli Cash and the Clash for instance, or Elliot Smith's Needle in the Hay playing over one pivotal point in the film.

I would recommend this film wholeheartedly to anyone who likes their films a little off centre - if you enjoyed Amelie, say or American Beauty then I think you would love this..

Unusual but excellent psychological comedy drama
Very unusual semi-psychological comedy drama starring Gene Hackman as an ageing lecherous wealthy father who tries to make peace with his long separated wife (Anjelica Huston) and their three damaged and eccentric adult children (Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Stiller and Luke Wilson).

Royal Tenenbaums is a thought provoking film which deals with deep issues like incest with sensitivity but is still essentially a life-affirming comedy. Like Amelie, its story is told in a “photo comic book” format, which, with the 70s haircuts on show, make it seem strangely both a period piece and a modern film dealing with contemporary issues. An excellent film with some fine performances.