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- “Family isn't a word... it's a sentence.”
- ―Tagline
The Royal Tenenbaums is a 2001 comedy drama film written, produced, and directed by Wes Anderson. The script was co-written by Owen Wilson who also stars in the film alongside Danny Glover, Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Bill Murray, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Stiller, and Luke Wilson.
Synopsis[]
The film follows the lives of the affluent and wealthy Tenenbaum Family, lead by patriarch Royal Tenenbaum. As all the family members gather under one roof after many years, things take a rather eccentric turn for everyone.
Cast[]
- Gene Hackman as Royal Tenenbaum
- Anjelica Huston as Etheline Tenenbaum
- Ben Stiller as Chas Tenenbaum
- Aram Aslanian-Persico as Young Chas Tenenbaum
- Gwyneth Paltrow as Margot Tenenbaum
- Irene Gorovaia as Young Margot Tenenbaum
- Luke Wilson as Richie Tenenbaum
- Amedeo Turturro as Young Richie Tenenbaum
- Owen Wilson as Eli Cash
- James Fitzgerald as Young Eli Cash
- Bill Murray as Raleigh St. Clair
- Danny Glover as Henry Sherman
- Seymour Cassel as Dusty
- Kumar Pallana as Pagoda
- Alec Baldwin as Narrator
- Grant Rosenmeyer as Ari Tenenbaum
- Jonah Meyerson as Uzi Tenenbaum
- Stephen Lea Sheppard as Dudley Heinsbergen
- Larry Pine as Peter Bradley
- Al Thompson as Walter Sherman
- Jennifer Wachtell as Rachael Tenenbaum
- Andrew Wilson as Farmer Father / Tex Hayward
- Sanjay Mathew as Sanjay Gandhi
- Mary Wigmore as Chas' Secretary
- Sonam Wangmo as Sing-Sang
- Pawel Wdowczak as Neville Smythe-Dorleac
- Peter Leung as Yasuo Oshima
- William Sturgis as Franklin Benedict
- Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Frederick - Bellboy
- Wes Anderson as Tennis match commentator (uncredited)
Production[]
The film's primary starting source was when Wes Anderson's parents divorced, though over the course of the story's development, this element became less prominent. Over time, Anderson and Owen Wilson began pulling from numerous sources to inspire the plot, setting, and characters with Orson Welles' The Magnificent Ambersons being the "subconscious" influence. The film's title actually came from two sources. J. D. Salinger's book Franny and Zooey, which featured a character named "Tannenbaum" and a family friend of Anderson's who just so happened to be named "Tenenbaum".
Gene Hackman was the first to be cast, afterwards Anderson cast everyone around him. He was reluctant to take the part of Royal as he had a rule against taking roles that were written specifically for him. Despite taking it, Hackman spent much of filming being very difficult to work with, even going so far as to insult Anderson to his face. Bill Murray had to be brought in on his off days to ease the situation between Hackman and the cast and crew.
Alec Baldwin claimed that the film did not have narration and was told that it might not be in the final film. This is contradictory as the narration was apparently always included in the script.
Trivia[]
- Andrew Wilson, brother of Owen and Luke Wilson, was Ben Stiller's hand double when showing the BB bullet in his hand.
- This is one of several movies that co-stars Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, two members of the famous Frat Pack.
- Michael Caine and Gene Wilder were considered for the part of Royal Tenenbaum.