Wes Anderson likes to make movies. If you watch the Behind the Scenes on the Criterion Collection DVD of The Royal Tenenbaums, you will see he has a deep knowledge of fabrics, architecture styles and colors. He doesn’t just say he wants something ‘red’ he’ll give the technical name for the exact shade. His process can be difficult and expensive when you have to start a production from scratch every time. That’s where billionaire Steve Rales comes in.
Part owner of the Indiana Pacers, Rales founded the production company Indian Paintbrush, which has kept infrastructure for Wes Anderson films going. Anderson doesn’t just like working with the same actors over and over, his Department heads also stay on, sometimes prepping one project while another is being filmed. This gives them more time to get the exacting details and costs less money because the buildings and offices are already in place and under long term contracts. That allows Wes Anderson to make the most Wes Anderson films that have ever been Wes Andersoned.
So why The Royal Tenenbaums? This is where I think the Wes Anderson Project first takes shape. Bottle Rocket doesn’t look like a Wes. Rushmore sounds like a Wes, and looks like a Wes in places, but he hasn’t sealed in his world. Tenenbaums is a New York City unlike any other because it’s Wes’ NYC. You notice the details in the wardrobe accessories, vehicles, props and makeup. Thanks to the script help from Owen Wilson, the characters are more nuanced and richer than they become in later films. This includes Gene Hackman, who had a terrible time making the film but gives a performance that’s often listed among his Top 5, which says something for an actor who worked a lot.
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