In the 2001 Wes Anderson film, The Royal Tenenbaums, the concept of family is challenged, by using an affluent New York unit as the primaries for consideration. The Tenenbaums live a fractured existence of shame, regret, and hubris. Led by Royal Tenenbaum, he his ex wife and their brood struggle to cope with life as a broken family unit, while struggling to right old wrongs, and live new lives in the wake of a disastrous pairing between he and his ex-wife, Etheline.
The Tenenbaums have 3 kids (one, Margot, adopted.) and have taken in a fourth who was a best friend of one of the other 3. The children are a strange mix of siblings with the boys, of which their are three, being a tennis pro, an accountant, and a writer. Margot is an accomplished playwright. By the end of the tale, all 3 boys have nervous breakdowns. Margot herself experiences loss, as she goes through yet another divorce, realizing that she is in love with her adopted brother, Richie.
Etheline Tenenbaum is having a difficult time moving on with her life, as her estranged husband, Royal refuses to sign divorce papers so that she may remarry her tax accountant. Seeing the disarray that his live of excesses has caused within his family,and nearing the end of his selfish life due to Cancer, Royal decides to make things right before he goes. Hilarity ensues, and life will never be the same for the Tenenbaums, and maybe that’s a good thing.
omegaruth 