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The Royal Tenenbaums

year 2001decade 00sdirector Wes Andersongenre Comedygenre Drama
host Chris Ryanhost Andy Greenwald
All 16 categories

The Neil McCauley “A Book about Metals” Award for Best Line from the Movie · 1:27:58

“All right, Bomber”

Chris Ryan: Richie and Chaz's exchange about writing a suicide note after regaining consciousness is a favorite.

The film

The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)

Directed by Wes Anderson · Comedy

110 minutes

IMDb Find on JustWatch Find on Rotten Tomatoes
Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Everything from the episode

In the order the hosts got to it. Open a row for the discussion.

29:48

Roger Ebert's review
In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:29:48Read transcript
  • The film was nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the 2002 Oscars. — Chris Ryan
  • Gene Hackman won a Golden Globe for playing Royal Tenenbaum. — Chris Ryan
  • The episode states that Roger Ebert gave the film three and a half stars. — Chris Ryan
  • The stated score is summarized as evidence that Ebert was a fan of the film. — Chris Ryan
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1:04:50

Casting What-Ifs

Gene Wilder and Michael Caine were considered for Royal before Gene Hackman accepted the role.

Gene Wilder and Michael Caine were considered for Royal before Gene Hackman accepted the role.

This discussion recalls a choice from an earlier episode.

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:04:50Read transcript
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1:17:46

Half-Assed Internet Research

Locations, literary and film influences, announcer voices, cast scheduling, Hackman's behavior, Bill Murray, the real...

Locations, literary and film influences, announcer voices, cast scheduling, Hackman's behavior, Bill Murray, the real house, period products, and Margot's cigarettes

In the discussion (17)
Approx. transcript time · 01:17:46Read transcript
  • The address 111 Archer is a real Harlem location near 144th Street. — Chris Ryan
  • Royal's unnamed hotel is represented by the Waldorf Astoria. — Chris Ryan
  • The film presents itself as an adaptation of a book that never existed, including visible page turns. — Chris Ryan
  • The discussion cites Louis Malle, the French New Wave, and Orson Wells among the film's influences; other names in the segment are sensitive to transcription errors. — Chris Ryan
  • The Magnificent Ambersons is identified as an especially strong influence on The Royal Tenenbaums. — Chris Ryan
  • Wes Anderson and Andrew Wilson voiced the announcers during Richie's tennis collapse. — Chris Ryan
  • An internet claim says Danny Glover, Luke Wilson, and Owen Wilson declined Ocean's Eleven roles to appear in this film; the speaker explicitly labels the claim uncertain. — Chris Ryan
  • The shoot was arranged around the cast's limited availability. — Chris Ryan
  • Gene Hackman was reportedly combative on set, with a possibly apocryphal story that Bill Murray confronted him. — Chris Ryan
  • Bill Murray's small performance is praised for understanding Anderson's tone and elevating limited screen time. — Andy Greenwald
  • Murray is described as difficult to contact because he works without a conventional agent. — Andy Greenwald
  • The production found the real house after foreclosure and rented it before the buyer renovated it. — Andy Greenwald
  • The reported rent equaled what the buyer had paid for the house. — Andy Greenwald
  • Recognizable New York places and real products remain visible even inside the film's carefully designed world. — Andy Greenwald
  • Chas's office uses real iMacs, and Royal shoplifts gummy bears rather than genericized products. — Andy Greenwald
  • Margot's cigarette brand is reported as an Irish brand discontinued in the late 1970s or 1980s. — Andy Greenwald
  • The participants joke that Margot's brief smoking style anticipates vaping. — Chris Ryan
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1:22:21

Recasting Couch

Robert Downey Jr. or John Goodman as a present-day Royal

Robert Downey Jr. or John Goodman as a present-day Royal

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:22:21Read transcript
  • The participants focus on recasting Royal rather than the siblings. — Chris Ryan
  • Robert Downey Jr. is proposed as a major actor who could use a substantial non-franchise role later in his career. — Chris Ryan
  • The idea is qualified because Downey may still seem too young to be the aging family patriarch. — Andy Greenwald
  • The uncertainty is whether Downey could still make Royal's emotional turn credible after years of movie-star franchise performances. — Andy Greenwald
  • Iron Man 3 is cited as a possible recent example of a genuine emotional response from Downey. — Andy Greenwald
  • John Goodman is the second proposal because he can be physically imposing while handling stage presence, drama, and comedy. — Andy Greenwald
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1:24:06

Picking Nits

Chas’s tracksuits, Richie’s suicide timing, Royal’s moral turn, and the Raleigh St. Clair subplot

Chas’s tracksuits, Richie’s suicide timing, Royal’s moral turn, and the Raleigh St. Clair subplot

In the discussion (9)
Approx. transcript time · 01:24:06Read transcript
  • Chas and his sons wearing tracksuits constantly is not explained within the film. — Chris Ryan
  • Anderson reportedly explained the tracksuits as clothes that keep Chas ready to move at any moment. — Chris Ryan
  • The funeral's black tracksuits make the unexplained wardrobe choice worthwhile as a visual joke. — Chris Ryan
  • Richie saying he will kill himself tomorrow and then acting immediately is questioned. — Chris Ryan
  • The offered explanation is that saying the intention aloud and recalling Margot makes the decision immediate while the razor is available. — Chris Ryan
  • The panel questions why Royal flips from bad to good without a more explicit transition. — Andy Greenwald
  • The counterargument is that spending time with the family is itself enough to change Royal, without a scripted speech explaining it. — Andy Greenwald
  • The film's dense visual detail never becomes excessive enough that either participant would remove an element. — Andy Greenwald
  • Raleigh St. Clair and Dudley's subplot may be unnecessary to Margot's discovery, but it remains welcome as part of the film's larger tapestry. — Chris Ryan
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1:32:59

Probably Unanswerable Questions

How do the Tenenbaums continue funding their lifestyle?

How do the Tenenbaums continue funding their lifestyle?

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:32:59Read transcript
  • The participants ask how the family funds its lifestyle after its members fall on hard times. — Andy Greenwald
  • Royal's earlier litigation income and outright ownership of the house are proposed as partial answers. — Andy Greenwald
  • Chas and Richie are proposed as the family members most likely supplying continuing funds. — Andy Greenwald
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