Rushmore

By sneaking this post in before midnight, I've avoided tying my personal record for all time fewest posts in a month. This is my sixth, here in June. Hey, I've been busy.

Not long ago, I went on an abbreviated Wes Anderson spree designed to go through nearly his entire filmography and culminate in Moonrise Kingdom. Ultimately I jumped into that movie a little prematurely, casting Rushmore aside for another day. Today was that day, and I can easily say that this was one of my favorite Wes Anderson movies, and perhaps my very favorite, to date. And the overwhelming reason this was so enjoyable was the main character, played by a young Jason Schwartzman. This came as somewhat of a surprise to me. I've never disliked Jason Schwartzman, but I've always felt, for an inexplicable reason, like he was the worst part about a number of movies or other roles he's been in. Maybe he just plays a certain type of character pretty well. I really can't say. Yet here, for whatever reason, he was just this charmingly endearing smarmy high school kid. In anyone else's hands, this character could have been annoying as hell, coming off as too pretentious or too awkward or any number of other flaws. Instead, Schwartzman just nails it from start to finish, bringing an earnestness and sincerity to a borderline irredeemable overachieving prep school student. I'm sure a great deal of credit is due to the writing and the editing and the very distinct Wes Anderson flavor on display throughout the movie. At any rate, I loved Rushmore, and I can easily see why it's widely considered to be Wes Anderson's best movie.