Rushmore

by Wes Anderson, Owen Wilson

Rushmore is the second work from the team of Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson following the success of their debut screenplay and film Bottle Rocket . It is a refreshingly offbeat comedy about young Max Fish, a precocious pupil at a conservative private school. He is a live wire, a teenager full of madcap entrepreneurial schemes that usually in failure. His personal life becomes similarly complicated when he falls for his elegant teacher, Rosemary Cross, and finds himself vying for her favor with Herman Blume-who is portrayed in the film by Bill Murray-the wealthy father of two of his classmates. Max ultimately proves himself a figure of some tenacity as he negotiates the minefield of love, desire, and adolescence.At the Toronto Film Festival, Screen International called Rushmore "a real charmer filled with surprise twists and emotions that avoid sentimentality . . . A little gem."

Genres: Film, Plays, Fiction, Media Tie In

160 pages, Paperback

First published May 31, 1999

About the author

Wesley Wales Anderson is an American director, writer, and producer of features, short films and commercials. He was nominated for a 2001 Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for The Royal Tenenbaums.

Reviews

[Samuel Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rushmore is my all-time favorite film; I have seen it around 9 times, and it is one of those films that feels hand-tailored to me and my sense of humor. So, as of lately, I've been very interested in the process of screenwriting, so I thought it would be a good exercise to read the screenplay for this film and see how its mechanics work. It was such an interesting read, since I've seen the film so many times, it was so cool to see how some scenes were cut down, slightly changed dialogue-wise, or simply not in the film at all. Reading also showed the power of editing just as much as the power of writing. I was able to match where each cut was and how dialogue is used as a cutting point. Anyway, I'll definitely be reading more screenplays soon. It's incredible to peel back the curtain and see how your favorite stuff appeared originally.

[Chasity · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book for my poetry and drama class as the only truly 'modern' play that we read and the only screenplay.

It just really wasn't for me. To me, this is a screenplay very obviously written by men for men. As a disclaimer, comedy isn't really my favorite genre.

I guess my main problem was that I didn't like the main character. We're basically told over and over how special this kid is and everyone seems to like him an extraordinary amount. It feels like how in books sometimes you'll be told that a character is 'clever' (or another trait) but then you never see them doing anything clever. While the main character does pull off some pretty huge stunts, it feels like he is lacking in important ways. I am unimpressed by the way he falls to pieces and becomes quite unlikable when anything doesn't go his way. I am unimpressed by his inability to work hard on things that aren't that important to him. (School classes.) These are all pretty typical things for a teenager. But isn't he supposed to be special?

Also, don't get me started on how women in this story are only used to further the stories of the men or provide them with motivation to an almost pathetic degree.

Maybe I would feel differently watching the actual movie. Maybe the actor would have somehow made the character more likable or editing would have made it better for me. Just not for me and my least favorite thing we've read in class so far.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I'm hesitant to implicitly promote screenwriting as a form of literature, it's sometimes fun to read a script and to see where the film and text diverge. It's of particular interest to see how Anderson utilizes unused scenes and visual motifs in the Rushmore script within his subsequent films, The Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. Foreword by James L. Brooks. Introduction by Wes Anderson.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as good as The Royal Tenenbaums, but still a charming little Wes Anderson tale.

[Juniperus · Rating 5 out of 5]

After his overly dense script to The French Dispatch, Rushmore has convinced me it’s Wes Anderson’s best screenplay because it’s his most concise. Even if his visual style was refined later, Anderson’s second-ever film Rushmore represents his script-writing at its freshest. It’s such a tight script, with nothing extraneous but still indulgent in parts, and a complete breeze to read. It was interesting just how many of the visual details were left till production — I could imagine this script being produced by a slightly less idiosyncratic filmmaker like Mike Nichols! Wes Anderson’s forward, written in 1998 when the biggest successes of his career were still ahead of him, was also incredibly inspiring and optimistic. He wrote a hit (screen)play! And directed it!

[Avedon Arcadio · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s quirky to say the least. But pretty much frame by frame word for word as the film. After revisiting this you see a lot of overlap with The Royal Tennebaums and The Life Aquatic. Reusing similar motifs it’s interesting how these return again and again but only in the more contemporary works. I always thought this film was a bit cringe and Schwartzman plays the character well enough that it’s too much at times but it’s a fun script.

[BF Toad · Rating 4 out of 5]

i was lucky enough to borrow a copy from a friend and man am i glad i read this.

i love rushmore so much—it’s such a good example of a coming of age story and feels like one of the most authentic pieces by wes. just pure heart and soul was poured into it.
i’ve always loved the movie, but getting to read the screenplay made me have a deeper appreciation for the whole story.

[Avalon Lafosse · Rating 5 out of 5]

an amazing screenplay to read (anything to see into the mind of wes anderson) with a wonderfully insightful forward and introduction. my favorite screenplay of his by far. max never ceases to crack me up!!

[Layla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Obviously good. I loved reading my favorite movie :))

[Hugh Davies Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

First screenplay I’ve read ever (?) Amazing movie.

[Stephen Hero · Rating 5 out of 5]

Earlier this season I was held captive in front of an eager audience that wanted to know whether or not I believed in magic.

"Fair enough," said I.

And so I let my audience know that far beyond a simple stated belief in magic, I actually wholeheartedly embraced magic.


Here's what I said:

I embrace an impalpable magic; a magic quickly gone, with illumined vision and sleepy murmuring; a magic that will cumulate into a type consensual music harnessed upon the unspoken narrative. However seemingly stopped in station, this magic is soon to move on; soon to start again.

"That's the magic that I embrace," said I.


Of course, the bunch of three-year-olds at the princess party really didn't want to hear about my stated belief with this impalpable magic. It turns out all they really wanted was to see an adult perform that fold-the-thumb-around-on-the-one-hand-and-make-it-look-like-it's-part-of-the-other-hand-all-the-while-sliding-it-back-and-forth-at-a-considerable-distance trick.

So, I obliged. And then I created some balloon animals for them. Snakes, mainly, but I also attempted a few disfigured daschunds as well.

[Tyler McGaughey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even if you've seen the movie, this is worth reading for the priceless Introduction, where Wes describes hanging out with an aged and appropriately crotchety Pauline Kael and screening the movie for her. Also, some of the character descriptions in the screenplay are pretty wonderful: Dr. Guggenheim is "very dashing with silver hair and a warmly patronizing manner" and Miss Cross has her hair "pulled back like a ballet dancer."

[Janie · Rating 4 out of 5]

hilarious! the rushmore film and screenplay are few things i find myself watching/reading over and over again.

[brian tanabe · Rating 4 out of 5]

It amazes me how short the screenplay is compared with how rich the movie is.

[Tess Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

it's different from the movie.

[Thomas Merzlak]

Masterfully executed comedy. Excellent trope subversion in the third act. Fantastically over-the-top. Love the extracurricular montage and ridiculously overdone Apocalypse Now/ Platoon stage plays.

[Elvi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Max is an extraordinary character. I wonder how Anderson came up with him.