The Royal Tenenbaums **** (2001, Gene Hackman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Anjelica Huston, Owen Wilson, Bill Murray, Seymour Cassel, Ben Stiller, Luke Wilson, Danny Glover) – Classic Movie Review 609

Gene Hackman won a Golden Globe as Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical for his high-energy, funny turn as Royal Tenenbaum, the grand daddy of a very odd, dysfunctional family. After years away, he returns to announce that he has a terminal illness and wants to make it up with his self-destructing family of geniuses (Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Stiller, Luke Wilson). But it turns out that Hackman’s only feigning a heart attack to stop his wife Etheline (Anjelica Huston) from marrying her new suitor Henry Sherman (Danny Glover).

Writer-director Wes Anderson’s 2001 offering again found the critics falling over themselves to praise another splendidly quirky comedy drama from him. This wacky, offbeat, charismatic curio is a bit of a rum do – with its lack of really good jokes and larky air of a posh pantomime – but it is very likeable and amusing. And it does get lots of full marks for the extremely game performances of the dazzling all-star cast and the brilliantly clever, Oscar-nominated screenplay, which again Anderson writes with actor Owen Wilson (as with Rushmore in 1999). Anderson wrote it specially for Hackman to play.

Owen Wilson, Bill Murray and veteran character actor Seymour Cassel (who plays Dusty) are also in the lovely cast.

Hackman also won the American Film Institute Featured Actor of the Year award. Double Oscar-winner Hackman (The French Connection, Unforgiven) announced his retirement from acting at the age of 78 in April 2008. His last film was Welcome to Mooseport in 2004. He is 87 on January 30, 2017. He is sorely missed from the movies.

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© Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Movie Review 609

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