Think of your favorite Wes Anderson movie. Now think of your favorite scene. Is it the moment in The Royal Tenenbaums when Margo Tenenbaum steps off the bus to Nico’s “These Days”? Or the one in The Life Aquatic when Steve Zissou takes his crew underwater to “Staralfur” by Sigur Ros? The most poignant moments in Anderson’s films always contain music. In fact, the acclaimed indie director has said he often thinks of the songs before he thinks of the movie. If that’s the case, surely his standout work came on this 1998 film.
Anderson originally wanted to fill his story of a precocious high school student, an idle millionaire and the teacher they both love with songs by the Kinks, but he soon changed his mind and went for a broader British Invasion theme. From the opening credits’ “Making Time” by the Creation to the concluding song (the Faces’ “Ooh La La”), Rushmore is an exercise in quirky indie sentimentality that still seems refreshing and original.
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