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The Royal Tenenbaums

The Royal Tenenbaums

Comedy · Drama · 2001

Royal Tenenbaum and his wife Etheline had three children and then they separated. All three children are extraordinary --- all geniuses. Virtually all memory of the brilliance of the young Tenenbaums was subsequently erased by two decades of betrayal, failure, and disaster. Most of this was generally considered to be their father's fault. "The Royal Tenenbaums" is the story of the family's sudden, unexpected reunion one recent winter.

Movie details

The Royal Tenenbaums

“Family isn't a word... it's a sentence.”

2001 Comedy · Drama 1h 50m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.5 / 10

Community rating

Royal Tenenbaum and his wife Etheline had three children and then they separated. All three children are extraordinary --- all geniuses. Virtually all memory of the brilliance of the young Tenenbaums was subsequently erased by two decades of betrayal, failure, and disaster. Most of this was generally considered to be their father's fault. "The Royal Tenenbaums" is the story of the family's sudden, unexpected reunion one recent winter.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Royal Tenenbaums?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Wes Anderson

Written by

Wes Anderson · Owen Wilson

Gene Hackman

Gene Hackman

Royal Tenenbaum

Anjelica Huston

Anjelica Huston

Etheline Tenenbaum

Ben Stiller

Ben Stiller

Chas Tenenbaum

Gwyneth Paltrow

Gwyneth Paltrow

Margot Tenenbaum

Luke Wilson

Luke Wilson

Richie Tenenbaum

Owen Wilson

Owen Wilson

Eli Cash

Bill Murray

Bill Murray

Raleigh St. Clair

Court is in session

Put The Royal Tenenbaums on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.