DO YOU SUFFER FROM ANSWER SYNDROME ?

By Annalee Newitz

No matter what the topic of conversation, you have something to say about it. I mean, of course you do! You took a lot of history and science courses in college, and you keep up with the latest news — from more than just one source, thank you very much. So what's the question, again? The problem with fracking? Eurozone economic collapse? Sewage in ancient Rome? Something about bee keeping? Yes, you have an answer. And you also suffer from one of the most common geek afflictions in the world. It's called "answer syndrome."

Top image: Shutterstock.com

I first heard of this disorder when I was doing a science journalism fellowship at MIT. A friend and I were talking to a computer scientist who suddenly launched into a long lecture about journalistic ethics. Even though this guy had never even dipped his toe in the journalism industry, he felt that he had answers to all the great ethical quandaries of the profession. Which, of course, he didn't — to an embarrassing degree. After he'd left, my friend turned to me, wrinkled her nose, and said simply: "Answer syndrome." I knew immediately what she meant.

Answer syndrome is the affliction of the hyper-educated, the detail-oriented, the obsessive, and the internet-saturated. It plagues people whose highly technical and specialized knowledge means that they often spend their days explaining things to people who have no idea what they are talking about. That computer scientist at MIT, for example, could have told you things you never even knew you wanted to ask about PGP encryption. People with answer syndrome get used to having all the answers. And then . . . they don't know when to stop.

Answering is a terrible addiction. It starts out with little things, like dropping a few bits of (correct) trivia you gleaned on Wikipedia about the history of the term "free market." But then it snowballs, and suddenly you're flailing wildly, convincing yourself that it's perfectly legitimate to inform everyone about how Adam Smith really wouldn't qualify as a capitalist today. After all, you know that it's true. How do you know? Well, it seems right. Based on what you've read, which by now seems to encompass several books, because after all the people who wrote the Wikipedia entry on free markets cited hundreds of sources — plus, there was that economics book you read that included a section on Smith. So surely that means that you have absorbed the relevant knowledge from at least a dozen sources.

At this point, you're in denial. At some deep level, you realize you don't really know what you're talking about, but you convince yourself otherwise. Answer syndrome, at its worst, is a form of self-delusion. But like all the most potent delusions, it's founded on truth. In the information overload age, we all know a little bit about everything. We've read a zillion headlines. And because we're human, we have opinions about stuff we're pretty hazy on. The person who suffers from answer syndrome, however, takes it to the next level. That person feels as if he or she is qualified to be an expert with all the answers — usually, as I said earlier, because he or she genuinely is an expert in one or two topics already.

Think of answer syndrome as a geek defense mechanism. It's hard to emerge into the real world from that cozy place of highly technical information where you know absolutely everything and people revere you as an answer god. Because in the real world, you don't actually know everything about the underlying mechanisms that control culture, the economy, and matter itself. Still, it's hard to admit where your expertise stops and uncertainty begins. You may have figured out which streets in your city have timed lights, but that doesn't mean you know why timed lights work (or don't), nor what the optimal route is from Point A to Point B in every possible region of the world.

It's frustrating to discover things you'll never be an expert at when you're a genius at writing algorithms to discover novel properties of the transcriptome, or analyzing the structural properties of concrete, or figuring out how to explain 500 million years of planetary evolution to people who didn't even realize Earth was once a giant ocean bubbling with speciating graptolites. And you know what's even more frustrating when you're a genius? Talking to people who presume to give you the answer to something! Especially something that you know, secretly, is way outside your area of expertise.

That frustration, my friends, is where all those answers come from when your mouth starts running faster than your knowledge base.

Is there a cure for this disease? Something that prevents you from shutting down conversations and making real experts think you're an idiot? Frankly, I don't know. Just ponder the wonder of that phrase for a minute — I don't know. Start every day by practicing it. Say it to yourself in the mirror in the mornings. What is the perfect razor for taking off the hair without leaving shaving wounds? I don't know. What is the historical reason why the Greek parliament is such a mess? Dunno. How did they film the shawarma scene in The Avengers? No freakin idea. What triggers mitosis? Nobody knows! And neither do you! So shut up!

The sooner you can ask — instead of answer — the more of a genius you'll really be.

OVER - UNDER REBOOT 2.0

Why Does ‘Oceans Eleven’ Get All of the Heist Movie Hype While ‘The Ladykillers’ Is Left Out in the Cold?

Though Steven Soderbergh has had a lengthy career full of acclaimed projects, he’s perhaps best known for his remake of Ocean’s 11, a successful compiling of some of the biggest names in Hollywood for a good, old-fashioned heist movie that was so successful it spawned two sequels. Despite the fact that he was better known for artier fare when Ocean’s Eleven was released, audiences responded well to this fairly simple robbery tale, and the slight modern spin that Soderbergh put on the film’s largely vintage aesthetic got pretty universal praise.

If there are any filmmakers working today who have a heftier resume of acclaimed works than Steven Soderbergh, then they’re definitely namedJoel and Ethan Coen. The Coen brothers have been making artsy, weird movies ever since the mid-80s, and though it’s taken them a while to achieve any real financial success, they’ve always enjoyed an ever-increasing amount of critical acclaim. That is, until they ventured into the romantic comedy and heist genres in 2003 and 2004 with Intolerable Cruelty and The Ladykillers. These two films are widely regarded as the Coens’ worst work, and their only movies worst skipping. This feeling is erroneous, however, because The Ladykillers in particular is very Coens and very fun, and the world was wrong for vilifying them for making a simple heist movie with a throwback feel. I mean, nobody minded when Soderbergh did it.

What do they have in common?

Both of these movies involve a rag-tag group of ne’er-do-wells being brought together because they each have a specific skill that makes them essential for an extremely intricate heist plan, and both heists involve casino money vaults. Both movies have something of a throwback feel.Ocean Eleven recalls the heist films of the ’60s, especially the Rat Pack-starring original that it’s a remake of. And though The Ladykillers is technically set in modern times, it takes its visual and sonic cues from classic Hollywood’s depictions of the old south. Technically they’re both remakes as well, though The Ladykillers in particular doesn’t much resemble the London-set original from 1955.

Why is Oceans Eleven overrated?

Ocean’s Eleven’s main issue is one of tone. Soderbergh made it slick and cool, but it becomes pretty disaffected in the process. You get the impression that everyone involved in the production is having a lark, taking a paid vacation, and though most everyone involved in really talented, it’s not much fun to watch people going through the motions. The movie is inoffensive and it moves along at a nice clip, but after it’s over you’re left with a feeling of, “Was that it?” It’s very unabashedly a trifle, and there’s a bit of charm in that, but in the end a trifle is still a trifle.

A lot of that could have been avoided if the climactic heist sequence had just been more thrilling. Brad Pitt and George Clooney’s characters put together a pretty elaborate plan, but it all relies so much on implausible gadgetry that it’s hard to get very invested in what they’re trying to pull off. There’s a feeling that no matter what they go up against, they can just pull some multi-million dollar piece of equipment out of their butts to take care of it, and you’re left without any worry for their well-being. We’re never let in on the whole plan either – so they can create a moment where we get fooled – and that also robs the scene of possible stakes. Scenarios like this work best when the audience knows the layout of the location and every step of the plan by heart, so we can freak out when the slightest thing goes wrong. I call it the Dirty Dozenprincipal.

Ocean’s Eleven also suffers from too many characters getting too little to do. Nobody other than Clooney really gets developed past a quirk or a skill, and though that could have been an opportunity to create some wacky, cartoon creations, here it just makes everyone forgettable. Like he did in his recent action flick Haywire, Soderbergh is relying on everyone’s already established star personas to float them through the film without having to develop their characters properly. It’s kind of like cheating. Can anyone describe Danny Ocean’s ex-wife in any other way than by saying that she’s Julia Roberts? Me either.

Why is The Ladykillers underpraised?

The Ladykillers had two big things going for it heading into its release that I thought would mean surefire financial success but that didn’t end up amounting to much. The first was that Tom Hanks was returning to his comedic roots after a long and well-documented foray into dramatic works. Everyone loves Hanks, he’s one of the biggest stars on the planet, so shouldn’t there have been lines of people waiting around the block for the chance to see him take on a silly, broad character again? I guess not. And the crime is that Hanks’s take on the chicken-fried villain is delightful and weird. The second thing this movie had going for it was how much everyone loved O Brother, Where Art Thou?’s bluegrass soundtrack. It seemed like The Ladykillers was offering up a gospel equivalent, but I guess nobody cared, because there are a lot of amazing musical performances in this film that have gone unappreciated.

And nobody in this supporting cast is coasting. Everyone here is firing on all cylinders and the chemistry they create is killer. I don’t have the space to say enough about this weird collection of misfits. Each one is completely ridiculous in their own way and the comedy that gets produced when they’re put together in the same room is something to behold. But I will give specific mention to Irma P. Hall’s performance as Marva Munson. She basically takes the lady from Tom & Jerry and turns her into someone who you have deep affection and empathy for. She’s funny, charming, and outstandingly authentic. This was an awards-worthy performance, and she should have gotten recognition by the big awards shows.

The Ladykillers should also be commended for what a layered watch it is, and how much it rewards repeat viewings. Not content to be a simple heist movie, its third act turns into a series of murder plots, amping up the hilarity even further. You think things are climaxing with the robbery sequence, but then you basically get two movies in one. What a deal! And there are so many weird references and little character moments packed into every scene that there’s no way you can pick up on all of them with just one viewing. Did anybody hear, “You think you scare me you little punk? Bull Connor and all his dogs didn’t scare me,” the first time they saw this movie and know what J.K. Simmons was talking about? I sure didn’t, but it makes me laugh now.

Evening the odds.

The most successful movies add something to our cultural lexicon, they create moments or vernacular that get picked up and added into society’s unconscious. Ocean’s Eleven kind of achieved this, because, despite the fact that the hastily assembled robbery crew conceit has been around forever, many people now attribute the trope to Brad Pitt and George Clooney’s efforts here. The Ladykillers hasn’t even come close to adding anything to the culture conversation, but if I’ve ever heard anything in any film that deserves to be oft-quoted more than, “He brought his bitch to the Waffle Hut!,” then I’ll be a monkey’s uncle. It’s high time more people revisit The Ladykillers and give it some of the appreciation it deserves.

You don’t need to steal anything to read more Over/Under?

THE CORONER'S REPORT

The Pact’ Offers Up the Scares But It’s the Smart, Capable and Sexy Lead Who Impresses Most

Horror films with hauntings and malicious ghosts at their center have been around for ages, but the last couple years have seen an odd trade-off happening onscreen. Movies like Insidious and the Paranormal Activity series have successfully increased the number of scares per minute while losing ground in other areas like narrative or character development. The PA films have some brilliantly executed scares, but none of the characters are memorable in the slightest. And Insidious is scary as hell and loaded with fun moments, but the story takes a giant dump on the audience in the final few minutes.

The Pact is a far lower profile release than either of those, and as such it takes a step back from their more bombastic approaches and instead finds a real balance between the scares, the characters and the story.

Nicole and Annie (Caity Lotz) are grown siblings whose overbearing and abusive mother has recently died. Annie reluctantly agrees to help her sister go through and clean up their mother’s house, but when she arrives Nicole is nowhere to be found. Their cousin arrives and she too soon disappears leaving Annie alone with a potentially malevolent presence, a mysterious walled-up room and a deadly secret in her family’s past. Oh, and Detective Casper Van Dien is breathing down her neck too…

Kills

Most of the folks simply disappear off-screen, but we do get a couple stabbings and a gunshot to the head.

Ills

The stabbings are bloody affairs, and the knife to the throat in particular is followed by copious amounts of the red stuff gushing from the wound. There’s also all kinds of visual creepiness in the third act.

Lust

Annie wears some nice, tight boy-shorts to bed and does much of her ghost busting in a cleavage-friendly tang-top.

Learning

Ghosts are usually after one of two things. They either want your help or they want to kill you. It’s a very important distinction.

Review

Annie’s search for the truth reveals some long buried truths about her family and her home, and while some of them will feel very familiar to genre fans writer/director Nicholas McCarthy‘s script manages to squeeze in a surprise or two. Even as the cliched parts play out on screen though the film maintains a steadily escalating pace that keeps viewers from ever getting bored or ahead of the story.

McCarthy’s direction is also worth noting as he creates most of the film’s tension and creepiness through camerawork as opposed to special effects. We follow Nicole and Annie through the house in continuous tracking shots that always leave us fearful of what’s around the next corner or through the next door. It’s simple but highly effective, and when the film’s two effects-oriented scenes do happen the result is heightened dramatically.

The film is worth watching for being a well-made horror film, but even more impressive is the lead character of Annie and in turn, the performance of Lotz. Even the smartest characters in horror make dumb mistakes usually to allow for the script’s scary setups, but Annie doesn’t make a single misstep. Not one. She hears noises in the house and immediately grabs a weapon. She’s attacked by an unseen force and immediately gets the fuck out of the house. She doesn’t scream when she sees a dead body, she brings the detective to the house with her before she investigates its nooks and crannies, and in one spectacular scene she goes on a proactive offense even as she’s bound and nearly immobile.

Lotz makes the physical action believable, but she also sells the drama of someone who’s answer to everything has been to simply leave the trouble behind. But faced with a missing sister and cousin, not to mention Nicole’s young daughter who’s now seemingly on her own, Lotz beautifully balances Annie’s desire to run with her desire to finally put an end to the pain. And in case I didn’t mention it before she looks damn fine in those boy-shorts and tang-top.

The Pact takes its time doling out the story and punctuates the narrative revelations with some genuinely creepy scenes. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it also never tries to. Fans of the genre should seek it out, but so should anyone who appreciates a strong female lead character. Annie is smart, capable and very easy on the eyes. She’s the ultimate horror film heroine and that alone is worth the price of admission.

AFTER DARK 53

Movie News After Dark: Lizard Creeps, TDK Rising, Wes Anderson Bingo and Game of Thrones, Bitch

What is Movie News After Dark? It’s a nightly movie news column in a hurry. It’s late for a very big date. With you, dear reader. It’s always been you.

Our top story tonight, The Amazing Spider-Man and a new look at the film’s villain, The Lizard. He’s looking quite menacing now that he’s got his full CGI on. Thanks to Entertainment Weekly, we now cannot quite look through the blinds of our window out of fear. Thanks, EW, you are useful as always.

“…the wild and poetic story of a woman’s erotic journey from birth to the age of 50 as told by the main character, the self-diagnosed nymphomaniac, Joe.  On a cold winter’s evening the old, charming bachelor, Seligman, finds Joe beaten up in an alleyway. He brings her home to his flat where he tends to her wounds while asking her about her life. He listens intently as Joe over the next 8 chapters recounts the lushly branched-out and multi faceted story of her life, rich in associations and interjecting incidents.” That’s the official synopsis for Lars von Trier’sNymphomanic, which sounds far less sexy than originally expected.

Just as I chastised them in a recent column for resting on their laurels, the folks at Warner Bros. have kicked the marketing for The Dark Knight Rises into high gear this week, releasing a bunch of images (chronicled by Jack in an article earlier today) and two TV spots. The following is my own personal favorite, as it features Batman’s new feline friend:

“We’ve got Sofia Vergara, who is a star in her own right, Jessica Alba, Michelle Rodriguez and Zoe Saldana. And guess what? I get to kiss all of ‘em.” This is what Danny Trejo said of the Machete sequel. Good on ya, you badass mothertrucker.

NBC may have thought themselves smooth about the handling of letting go Dan Harmon from Community, up until a talking points memo about Harmon’s firing was leaked  out onto the internet. It’s all pretty standard stuff, which doesn’t make it any less sad.

The folks at Art of the Title are featuring Saul Bass’ Anatomy of a Murder titles in the most recent entry in their long-running series of amazing work exposing the artistry behind the openings of some of cinema’s great films. It’s more than worth your time.

Peter Martin at Twitch has written an interesting piece on Barry Sonnenfeld and the Value of a Journeyman. Over at Thompson on Hollywood, Bill Desowitz is Tripping Out on the Cartoon Reality of Men in Black 3. In other news, Men in Black 3 was pretty entertaining.

With the imminent release of Moonrise Kingdom, easily one of the best films of Wes Anderson’s career, Slate wants you to celebrate the Anderson-tropes by playing Wes Anderson Bingo. I think you should play, as well.

We close tonight with a Song of Fire and Ice and ham sandwiches in the shower, a sing-a-long version of the Game of Thrones opening theme. It’s a bit silly. And by a bit, we’re talking full r-word silly. But it gets a few laughs.

SLEEP KILLS

• Sleep Kills...!!!
  Personal fan art illustration
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OPUS IN G MINOR

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The illustrator Filip Acovic makes very brilliant works, very detailed and inspired by comics, fantasy and video games such as Street Fighter. The artist has a mature universe and creates or revisits characters with a real talent. Filip is based in Belgrade, Serbia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BOOB TUBE ALPHA GALS

Veronica Mars is coming back to TV. Now, don’t get excited — there are no new episodes in the works. (Kristen Bell is 31 years old at this point, after all.) But this Sunday, fans will be able to stuff themselves with wisecracking teen-sleuth goodness as SOAPnet kicks off its syndication of the series with an 11-hour marathon. We’re so excited to see such a strong female character on television again that we’re celebrating by rounding up 15 of the all-time most powerful women on TV. From Mary Richards to Daenerys Targaryen, our picks are after the jump. Leave your additions in the comments.

Veronica Mars, Veronica Mars

At 17 years old, Veronica Mars has endured more trauma by her junior year of high school than most people have to deal with in a lifetime: her best friend, Lily, is mysteriously murdered, her sheriff father is disgraced after accusing Lily’s father of the crime, she’s raped, and her alcoholic mother disappears. Thankfully, Veronica is also a brilliant and cynical detective-in-training, systematically untangling each and every one of her own complex mysteries while outsmarting her town’s stupid, corrupt new sheriff and solving those of her peers (for a price, naturally).

Buffy Summers, Buffy the Vampire Slayer

There’s no denying that Veronica Mars was the successor to Buffy Summers — another beautiful, blonde, formerly popular teenage ass-kicker with a lot of baggage. Of course, Buffy’s powers went beyond investigative prowess to encompass the sort of superhuman strength required for a night job making vampires go poof. Over the course of the series’ seven seasons, its heroine grew from reluctant monster-killer to empowered leader of a slayer army. (In fact, her story isn’t over. Joss Whedon has created a somewhat uneven series of comic books that pick up where the series finale left off; we’re now technically in the midst of Season 9.) Also, Buffy is the only character on this list who saved the world. A lot.

Daenerys Targaryen, Game of Thrones

There was no single character arc in Season 1 of Game of Thrones that was more satisfying to watch than Daenerys Targaryen’s. Initially a pawn in her brother’s scheme to regain the throne, she came into her own after an arranged marriage to Dothraki leader Khal Drogo that made her a queen and, judging by the couple’s frequent bedroom scenes, fulfilled all her sexual needs. Midway through the season, Daenerys was eating horse hearts, delivering fiery speeches, and watching her brother die a gory, gilded death. She’s had a few major setbacks since then, but considering that this is a woman who’s part dragon — who also happens to have three dragon babies of her very own — we’re pretty sure she’ll be OK.

Murphy Brown, Murphy Brown

She may not solve crimes, kill vampires, or lead nomadic armies, but Murphy Brown did manage to piss off Dan Quayle, and that’s nothing to sneeze at. A recovering alcoholic with a quick temper, Murphy is one of TV’s prickliest leading ladies, and her attitude isn’t even what makes her such a badass. She’s also a brave, principled, and well-respected news reporter who chose to become a single mother despite the prejudice (and real-world backlash) she knew was in store.

Sun-Hwa Kwon, Lost

Perhaps Kate Austen is the obvious choice for this list — she was Lost’s dangerous fugitive and the lady most likely to run around the island with the boys and their weapons. But in the end, it was initially timid Sun who proved the steeliest. The daughter of a powerful Korean businessman, she fell in love with a poor fisherman’s son and watched her father turn him into a hardened criminal. On the brink of leaving Jin before ultimately deciding to board the doomed Oceanic Airlines flight along with him, she sticks close by her him during their early days on the island. Soon, however, we discover that Sun is a bit more complicated than we realized. Fairly early on, we find out that she speaks English — and from there, it only takes a few seasons of physical and psychological torture for her to become a gun-wielding mother with a score to settle.

Robin Scherbatsky, How I Met Your Mother

Apparently, when you raise your little girl as though she’s a little boy, the result looks something like Robin Scherbatsky. A TV reporter (like Murphy Brown!) who’s worked her way up from puff pieces to hard news, she’s determined to focus on her career, repeatedly declaring her lack of interest in marriage and family. It gets more complicated from there, but even through disappointment and heartbreak, Robin remains one tough lady.

Leela, Doctor Who

The first thing you need to know about Leela, the Fourth Doctor’s late-’70s companion, is that she was named after the Palestinian hijacker Leila Khaled. In case that’s insufficient proof of her ferociousness, Leela is also a highly intelligent tribal warrior who’s got a way with knives. It’s kind of too bad that she prematurely departed the series after falling in love (i.e., after the actress who played the part, Louise Jameson, decided to leave the show), but we’re sure she was just as fearsome on her adopted planet, Gallifrey, as she was by the Doctor’s side.

Peggy Olson, Mad Men

On the most recent episode of Mad Men, Peggy asks her new colleague Dawn, “Do you think I act like a man?” In this rare moment of vulnerability, we become aware of what she’s had to sacrifice — not only her personal life, but her sense of herself as a woman — for professional success. Although she doesn’t hold all the power at Sterling Cooper Draper Price yet, she’s a smart and self-possessed copywriter who has everything to gain from the nascent second-wave feminist movement. We predict that, of all the characters on Mad Men, she’ll be doing the best 20 years down the road.

Zoë Washburne, Firefly

Joss Whedon is famous for his powerful female characters, so you’d better believe that it was actually hard work to pare down his appearances on this list to two. Buffy was the obvious pick, but Zoë Washburne shouldn’t be overlooked, either. Second in command on the Serenity, this military lifer is cool, logical, and — most importantly — lethal. Plus, in a typically Whedonesque flourish, Zoë’s dangerous lifestyle doesn’t keep her from maintaining a committed relationship.

Mary Richards, The Mary Tyler Moore Show

Mary Richards is an unmarried woman with a career. This doesn’t seem like a big deal in 2012, but when The Mary Tyler Moore show premiered over four decades ago, she was the first TV protagonist of her kind. In a show whose run coincided with the height of the feminist movement, Mary interviewed to be a secretary at WJM-TV and wound up with an Associate Producer gig. Not only was she the Peggy Olson of news, but she paved the way for the Murphy Browns and Robin Scherbatskys who followed.

Starbuck, Battlestar Galactica

In the original 1978 TV series Battlestar Galactica, Lieutentant Starbuck was a man. But in the 21st-century reboot, the arrogant, excitable ace starfighter pilot is Kara “Starbuck” Thrace, a resourceful military woman with a dark past and a drinking problem to match. Hardly the most emotionally sound lady on this list, she makes up for her self-destructive tendencies through sheer, selfless bravery.

C.J. Cregg, The West Wing

Loosely based on Clinton administration press secretary Dee Dee Myers, C.J. Cregg is President Josiah Bartlett’s tough but fair public face. Coming out of the cutthroat private sector, where she raked in cash at a PR firm, C.J. consistently puts her personal life on hold for her high-powered job — and she’s rewarded for it. In Season 6 of The West Wing, she’s promoted to White House Chief of Staff, a position which no woman has ever held in real life.

Æon Flux, Æon Flux

Never mind the crappy film version, which was a total waste of Charlize Theron — we’re talking about the original TV series, which debuted on MTV’s Liquid Television in 1991. Æon Flux is a secret agent/assassin from the dystopian future, with a talent for tumbling and revolutionary anarchist undertones. Sure, she’s always dying, but at least she looks awesome doing it.

Sydney Bristow, Alias

Speaking of looking awesome, Sydney Bristow — a character who JJ Abrams once described as “Felicity as a spy” — had us convinced that the best part of working for the CIA was the amazing closet of costumes and wigs that came along with the gig. The not so fun stuff: having to deal with the deaths your fiancé and your best friend, finding out that your mother was a former KGB spy, or discovering that you’re actually employed by an international terrorist group. There was also that whole two-year period when Sydney was kidnapped, brainwashed into believing that she was a woman named Julia Thorne, and did some really bad things. We’d say that it takes an extremely strong person to deal with all of the above without going absolutely nuts, wouldn’t you?

Maude Findlay, Maude

Played by the one and only Bea Arthur, Maude Findlay was yet another ’70s pioneer. She first appeared on All in the Family, as Edith’s liberal cousin and vocal critic of her marriage to Archie. When she got her own show, Maude blossomed into an outspoken feminist who scuffled with her more traditional husband, Walter, and became a mouthpiece for groundbreaking depictions of abortion, mental illness, and other hot-button issues. By the time the show ended, after six seasons, she was a congresswoman.

COMMENTARY 27

30 Things We Learned From ‘The Royal Tenenbaums’ Commentary

Posted: 24 May 2012 10:00 AM PDT

Wes Anderson loves family dramas dressed as fantasies, and this notion is no less palpable with The Royal Tenenbaums, the film that essentially set him on the map. A lot of us remember finding Bottle Rocket in video stores or trekking out with friends to see Rushmore, but that was mostly because of Bill Murray. The Royal Tenenbaums was the movie that made people realize this voice in the world of independent film making had arrived.

11 years later, and Anderson’s latest, Moonrise Kingdom, another light-hearted drama made to look like a fable, is upon us. However, we felt it was time to go back and see exactly what the writer/director had to say about his pinnacle film, The Royal Tenenbaums. There’s sure to be references of French movies and anecdotes about writing with Owen Wilson, but that’s the obvious stuff. We’ve got 28 more items beyond that. So help yourselves with what we learned from the commentary for The Royal Tenenbaums.

Cue the Elliott Smith.

The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)

commentators: Wes Anderson (co-writer/director)

• “One of the initial ideas for this movie was that it would be based on a book, a book that doesn’t actually exist,” says Anderson right at the beginning of the commentary. He notes this is why the opening shot of the film is of someone checking the book, “The Royal Tenenbaums,” out of a library. He also mentions the opening title shot is a reference to Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger‘s opening titles, particularly The Red Shoes.
• Owen Wilson had told Anderson he should write a screenplay about his parents’ divorce, and this was the director’s intent with this film. “As soon as Royal began to speak, his answers were nothing like the answers my father had given under similar circumstances with my brothers and I,” Anderson says. He goes on to say the more he wrote Royal and the events in the film, the less it became about his own experiences.
• The shooting incident seen at the beginning of the film was inspired by a real event where Owen Wilson shot his brother, Andrew, with a BB gun. According to Anderson, you can still see the BB under Andrew’s skin on his hand. You know, something for him to remember Owen by. The shot of Chas showing his father the BB in his hand is actually Andrew Anderson‘s hand.
• Originally, Etheline, played by Anjelica Huston, was to blow out the candles to Margot’s birthday cake. A few shots of this were captured, but, as Anderson recollects, her hair caught on fire on the fifth take. It was Kumar Pallana‘s quick thinking that got the fire out before Huston got too badly burned. This makes up for him stabbing Gene Hackman later on.
• Anderson notes before Royal Tenenbaum was even a character, before he had him fleshed out and set in the story, he knew Gene Hackman was going to play him. “That was one of the core ideas,” he says. “I just wanted to do something with him. That was the mission.” And there are far worse missions you can set for yourself.
• The time setting for the film is brought up, as Anderson doesn’t have a specific period of time in which the events of the movie takes place. He does point out that each character is dressed in the attire that calls back to “when they were at their best.” When Ben Stiller asked Anderson why his character and his two sons are always wearing a bright red warmup suit, the director mentioned it was so his kids could find him and each other in crowded areas. He made this reason up on the spot. “It’s the same reason why they have curly hair,” Anderson says. “I thought it was funny.”
• “I don’t think you’re really allowed to go this far without starting the story, but we did,” says Anderson at 11:34.
• Bill Murray‘s character, Raleigh St. Clair, is based off of Oliver Sacks, a British neurologist who Anderson is a big fan of. The director read a piece of him in the New York Times that spelled out his lifestyle. Anderson felt this character would be a perfect fit for The Royal Tenenbaums. “Before you’ve ever heard of him, you might have read a profile of him in the New Yorker back when the New Yorker wrote profiles about people you’d never heard of,” Anderson says. “I feel like that’s part of the New York the movie is kind of about.” Anderson wrote the part for Murray more or less just to give the actor a part.
• Hackman was “disturbed,” as Anderson says, by the way Kumar was positioned in an early scene, directly in front of and completely hiding the Statue of Liberty. This was early in shooting, and the director found difficulty in trying to explain to Hackman why he had Kumar stand in this spot. “I don’t think he ever fully agreed with the choice,” Anderson says. No one stands between Hackman and Lady Liberty.
• The Royal Tenenbaums is the third movie Anderson and Owen Wilson wrote together, and the director mentions how their writing collaboration has been different in every one. He mentions Bottle Rocket as the movie where the two worked the closest, but Wilson quickly became a successful actor and then star after that. “In the case of this movie, I ended up on my own much more than I would like to be,” Anderson says. He goes on to say the center of their collaboration as writers is the voice they established together in their similar senses of humor and books and movies they admire. “Even if I’m writing something alone, I’m drawing on something Owen and I share,” he says.
• The scene where Richie, played by Luke Wilson, sees Margot as an adult, played by Gwyneth Paltrow, stepping off the bus was one of a few scenes Anderson had written down on notes a number of years before he even wrote the screenplay. “This music would go with this image,” he says, “although I didn’t know who was really walking off the bus, and I don’t even think it was a bus. But the thing I didn’t know about was the expression on her face, which is the thing I think that makes it work.”
• Anderson notes music in his films is very important, as he likes to incorporate songs and pieces of music that inspired ideas in his screenplays. He also mentions music can drive the overall tone or themes of the film.
• The dalmatian mice were created using a Sharpie marker. “I don’t know if that’s illegal,” notes Anderson. We’re not sure either, but you gotta have dalmatian mice, right?
• Anderson’s mother was an archaeologist. The director remembers visiting her dig sites with his brothers as a child, and he incorporates much of this into the scenes at Etheline’s dig and much of his own mother into the Etheline character in general.
• Margot’s wooden finger was an element Anderson originally intended for the Margaret Yang character in Rushmore. The finger was meant to have been blown off in a science experiment, but he brought it back and used it fully for the character here.
• The voices of the commentators during Richie’s awful tennis match are Andrew Wilson and Wes Anderson. “Some people think it’s Jason Schwartzman for some reason,” says Anderson, sounding nothing like Schwartzman.
• Anderson goes through the paintings in Eli’s house and mentions who painted what, but they’re a bunch of names you’ve never heard before. Listen to the commentary if you wanna know. The point is, the painting behind Eli while he’s sitting was purchased by Anderson a few years before he filmed The Royal Tenenbaums. He thought it was funny and notes how he thinks the characters are probably on mescaline, like Eli.
• The director mentions how important the house was for The Royal Tenenbaums. He had written the screenplay, and they were about ready to shoot, but it didn’t really come together until they found the house in which they shot. The first time he walked through it he knew exactly which rooms match which character. He also notes how the house helped the actors connect to their characters and the other characters. Location, location, location, you know?
• Anderson and Wilson don’t think about themes when they’re writing, and any themes that come out in the end, he says, come from the characters. “The movie didn’t mean anything for me until the characters started to become connected to things that I had been through,” he says. He recalls showing the screenplay to a friend who found obvious themes in it that Anderson didn’t even intend. “We just didn’t discuss them, I guess,” he says.
• As Anderson explains, “Coltrane,” which Royal calls Henry Sherman (Danny Glover), is a rare racial slur. Hackman wanted to change the line to Satchmo, but Glover agree with the director that Coltrane seemed to work better. “I don’t know what it means, exactly,” says Anderson.
• Don McKinnon, who plays the detective, hadn’t acted in a film before but was a friend of Anderson’s and Bob Wilson. Anderson introduced McKinnon to the writer and director Hampton Fancher at a party. It was Fancher’s idea to use McKinnon as a detective. Anderson stole his idea. “I apologize to Hampton for that,” says Anderson, with very little genuine remorse in his voice.
• Anderson mentions confusion he has heard from audience members about Richie’s line “I’m going to kill myself tomorrow” followed by him slitting his wrists. The director explains it’s a line taken from Le feu follet or The Fire Within, a Louis Malle movie, which Anderson notes was a huge influence on The Royal Tenenbaums. He explains this was a “turn” Richie makes and decides then and there to kill himself immediately.
• Anderson forgot to establish Royal’s new job as an elevator operator, and decided on set to include the shot where Royal is told of Richie’s attempted suicide.
• Originally, Richie and Margot were brother and sister, not adopted in Margot’s case. This was another reference to The Fire Within and was also pulled from like situations Anderson saw as a kid. He recalled a kid he knew in fourth grade who was in love with his own sister. “But, eventually the Margot character, I decided to have her adopted because of other things it would do to her character,” he explains. He also mentions it filled out the character better and made the relationship between the two more realistic. Because nothing says “bogus” like incest.
• Anderson notes they included the bird Mordecai’s caw in the film here and there, almost to show the bird is always in Richie’s life and always watching over him. The bird in the scene where Mordecai shows up is actually Mordecai’s sister. Let’s call her Esther. According to Anderson someone in New Jersey found the bird, kept it, and tried to get ransom money for it. Police became involved, and it took two weeks to get the actual bird playing Mordecai back. “It’s very complicated to fly birds in the city,” says Anderson. “It really shouldn’t be done.”
• He isn’t sure if it’s lost on the audience, but every table at the ice cream parlor during the scene where Royal tries to reconnect with Margot has fathers and their daughters. He also notes this scene was written as being very funny, but it became more dramatic once the actors performed it.
• The beagle seen throughout the movie, Buckley, was a reference to Snoopy of the Peanuts cartoons. Anderson notes they tried to get it across that the dog was sick and dying, and even thought about including coughing sounds from the dog, but this idea was scrapped thinking it too cartoonish. “I think you have to do CGI or something to have dogs coughing,” he says. This was intended to help lessen the drama when the dog gets run over near the end. Take that as a lesson. Driving over sick dogs? It’s not that bad.
• Before shooting the scene between he and Hackman near the end, Ben Stiller asked Anderson if he’d be shooting coverage, that is shooting from many different angles to provide a comfortable amount of footage for editing. This question is what gave Anderson the idea of showing all the characters – Margot excluded – after the aftermath of Eli crashing his car in one, continuous shot. Anderson recalls Stiller letting out a dejected sigh after the director told him the conversation between he and Hackman would be one shot. Anderson believes the scene between the two of them works, though. “This is take 18,” he says. He also mentions it’s the most important moment of the whole movie.
• The line “Wind’s blowing up a gale today” was improvised by Owen Wilson. Anderson notes Wilson improvised this line in Behind Enemy Lines, as well.
• When Anderson told Luke Wilson he would be the last one to leave the grave site in the final shot, the actor was surprised. He never felt there was much emphasis on Richie, but Anderson notes he thinks this is the “center of the movie.” “And then Kumar closes the gate to the family plot, and that’s the end of the movie.”

Best in Commentary

“The movie was always meant to be a New York movie, but, somewhere along the way, it became, as I feel everything I’ve done, a fable.”

“I think, among other themes, one of the big ones in the movie has to do with failure, and the effect it has on people. In the case of this family, all these children…I got this expression from Bob Wilson, which is they peaked early.”

“I’d quit smoking. This movie ended that.”

Final Thoughts

Remember what we said last week – and the week before – about director flying solo on these commentary tracks? Scratch that, because Wes Anderson knows exactly how to deliver ample amounts of insight and anecdotes about The Royal Tenenbaums here. Granted, this is a Criterion Collection disc, and if there’s anyone who won’t stand for 10 minutes of silence in a commentary track, it’s the people at Criterion. Once again they prove their worth, and, once again, Anderson makes it clear how incredibly talented and full of knowledge he is.

There are several references brought up in the commentary, most of them being relayed by Anderson brushing on what inspired certain sections of the film. There is a definite passion for films of old, outside-the-box music, and left-of-center artists he is fascinated by. All of that comes through on the commentary, and it’s one that anyone, not just fans of the man’s work, should seek out and listen to.

Now if only Criterion would be us a Fantastic Mr. Fox Blu, we could all die happy.