Owen Wilson should stick to writing.
Perhaps best known for his roles in “Meet the Parents” and “Shanghai Noon,” Wilson has also teamed up with writer/director Wes Anderson for a third installment of their quirky sense of humor, “The Royal Tenenbaums.”
Royal Tenenbaum, played exquisitely by Gene Hackman, hasn’t been a father to his three kids in 22 years, which may explain for the strange behavior each exuded since childhood. Chas is the business-savvy whiz kid, Richie is the tennis ace and Margot, whom Royal always introduces as his adopted daughter, is the prize-winning author. Royal’s wife Etheline is the stay-at-home mother, juggling her children’s events around the writing of her book on raising a family of geniuses.
After spending all of his money, Royal needs to get back into the growing unrest of his family’s lives. He seeks help from his conspirator Pagoda, a Tenenbaum servant who met Royal when he stabbed him with a knife on a contract kill.
Chas (Ben Stiller) became paranoid about his children’s safety after his wife died in a plane crash.
Richie (Luke Wilson) lost his game and is now riding a ship around the world.
Margot (Gwyneth Paltrow) hasn’t written a play in years and lives in her bathroom, rather than with her psychologist husband (Bill Murray).
Etheline (Anjelica Huston) is an aspiring archeologist, supervising digs around New York with her accountant/potential finance (Danny Glover).
Also thrown into the mix is Eli Cash, a former neighbor of the Tenenbaums, who now writes Western novels with mixed reviews.
As screwed up as they all sound, the film sympathizes with every character, each one trying to hide the truth of their own lives, which adds a bit of human charm to the film. For example, Margot is a life-long smoker, having started at 12, but no one in her family, not even her husband, knows or even suspects.
Part of the human emotion added to the film is the stellar performances turned in by the entire cast. Hackman, who has been nominated for a Golden Globe, is the perfect lovable loser, low enough to invoke sympathy, but still armed with a sharp tongue and an always scheming brain.
Perhaps the most surprising performances came from the three kids. With all three coming off more fluff-filled performances (“Shallow Hal” for Paltrow, “Legally Blonde” for Luke Wilson and “Zoolander” for Stiller), their transformation into outstanding actors seems all the more amazing. All three invoke sympathy for their lots in life, with Stiller losing his wife, Wilson suffering a break-down and Paltrow losing half a finger in an ax accident.
The only disappointment coming from the performances, is the lack of screen time for the rest of the supporting cast. Huston shines as the neurotic mother, who doesn’t seem to know her true place in life. Glover commands his scenes, especially trading barbs with Royal, who isn’t too pleased with another man taking over his place in the family. The best performance though, belongs to Murray, as a psychologist who seems to need more help than his patients. His recent step back into supporting roles has provided Murray some of the best performances of his career, even stealing “Wild Things” away from Denise Richards and her nudity.
Despite Owen Wilson’s chuckle-inspiring role as the wannabe-Tenenbaum (watch for his scene in face paint), his greatest contribution to the film is the side-splitting writing, helping to round out a rarity among modern films – a truly funny comedy.