Barber Shop Scene Analysis

The barber shop scene in Wes Anderson’s film Rushmore shows Max’s disconnection from his father and Rushmore. Max has been kicked out of Rushmore and is ashamed of his father. The camera shot has Max focused on in the center while he is reminiscing about Rushmore, but his father, who is cutting Max’s hair, is cut out from the shot and only made visible in the reflection of the mirror. The camera shot is meant to isolate Max from his father, because Max has always been ashamed that his father is not able to pay for Rushmore like everyone else. He has even told Mr. Blume, his best friend, that “[his] father may only be a doctor, but we manage.” This quote shows how much being rich matters in Max’s life. On the other hand, Max’s father’s expression is more eager and not ashamed at all, because he has always wanted to please Max. While Max is reflecting on his time in Rushmore, he is afraid that he could become like his father, a poor barber, and this is represented by the way his father is shown in the mirror. The background which is very boring with the main colors being white and brown gives us a dreary feeling, because usually Max is shown in front of an exciting background; there is always something going on whether he is putting on one of his plays or starting a new club. However, the bright lighting contrasts the setting and it shows how Max’s father is eager to reconnect with his son, but for Max the lighting represents a new beginning for Max at his new school and foreshadows his great success at his upcoming play. In this scene I would add Kathy’s Judy Bridgewater tape in the background because her tape symbolizes all of her good times at Hailsham and when she loses her tape she feels lost and when Max loses Rushmore he too feels lost.

Rushmore Scene Analyzation

This scene of Wes Anderson’s Rushmore gives insight into the personal identity of the protagonist, Max Fisher, as aloof and somewhat distant from his peers. The gray halls behind him contrast to his serious coat and tie which works as a symbol for his separation from his classmates. The students behind him laugh and talk, whereas he walks seriously and alone. This shows both that he believes that he is superior to the immature students, and at the same time, it shows his loneliness as compared to the other students. The hallway is lit brightly, but his navy appears to be darker, even more separating him from the students. Max’s coat also is ironic because it hides the fact that he, without saying it, is barely holding it together at Rushmore. Behind his serious attitude hides unspoken fear that he will not be able to attend Rushmore anymore because of his disregard for his grades. The angle of the shot is close and focused on Max himself, illustrating him as an outsider even more. Max walks in front of the other students and shows that he doesn’t have time for the other people around him. This connects back to his initial feeling of fear as he tries to hold it together during his time at Rushmore. If I had directed this movie I would have added a pack of cigarettes sticking out of Max's pocket because it would connect to the books Black Swan Green and Catcher in the Rye. 

The Play

Max Fischer's phenomenal play about a war ends with Max's character looking of into the sunset while holding up a peace sign. This portrays Max's ending of the conflict between him and Murray. In one of the mock fights, Max accidentally gets hit in the face, on his right side. However, in this shot, he's turned to the right to where you can't see the injury. Max hides his injuries to continue the play, just as in the previous parts of the movies, he wouldn't let an injury get in the way unless he had a use for having an injury. Also in this clip, the backdrop is obviously depicting a sunset, showing that the play, along with the movie, is coming to a closing. Even though that Max's face is expressionless, he is holding a peace sign, symbolizing the end of the conflict, both in the play, and declaring peace between him and Murray. Also, Max's eyes are hidden by a pair of sunglasses; however, if you look very closely, you can see a reflection in the glasses, where you can see a soldier in a red hat. The only person in the play wearing a red hat was Magnus, the Scottish bully that Max invited to be part of the play. This signifies multiple conflicts resolved. The major one being between Murray, but also the conflict between Max and Magnus, one of a bully and a victim, is also solved. The close up and low angle shot allows the viewer to see the dark mottled camouflage makeup on Max's face contrast with the background of the sunset.

Barber Shop Scene

 
  
    This scene in Wes Anderson's Rushmore portrays Max's feeling of dismay because he thinks that he will have to follow in his fathers footsteps after he was kicked out of Rushmore. The background in this shot is quite boring and bland.This plainness is shown through the use of the colors white and brown. This plainness helps draw the focus of the scene to Max and the mirror. It also emphasizes how unexciting it is to be a barber. This bland overtone contrasts with Max's exciting and adventurous personality because Max is always doing something adventurous like trying to build an aquarium, bee keeping, or writing plays. The mirror illustrates how Max is doomed to being a barber because it shows only Max and his father. The way Max's father is positioned in the shot reinforces Max's fate because his father’s face is smaller than his and in the corner of the mirror drawing attention from max’s father. This makes it seem as if Max is isolated and contemplating this by himself. The feeling of isolation also contrasts with Max’s personality because he is always surrounded by people helping him with projects like when he was walking through the public high school and had people that were acting as his assistants. Max's facial expression and body language suggest that he is saddened and defeated because he will be a barber just like his father. Max even lies about his dad's job because he is embarrassed of it and expresses this embarrassment when he says to Mr. Blume " I may not be rich, Mr. Blume. And my father may only be a doctor. But we manage.”  The bright lighting in the shot contrasts with the gloomy mood in the scene ;however, The shot is also using the lighting to display a plain, boring feeling which makes Max envision his future.The plain white robe covering Max's clothes reiterates how his creative personality is being suppressed by his lack of opportunity. A good item to add to this seen would be a trash can filled with his plays and items from Rushmore because he has lost all of the things that define him and has been forced to be something that he doesn't want to be.
Rushmore. Dir. Wes Anderson. Perf. Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray. Touchstone Pictures, 1998. DV

Baggage

Baggage 

Rushmore, one of the top prestigious private schools in the nation, harbors all variations of wealth and pain. In this still, the steel grill of Blume’s sleek, black Cadillac is completely in focus, and attracts the viewer’s full attention. The combination of the car, and Rushmore’s ornate stone-bricked buildings in the background, gives off an overwhelming theme of luxury. Inside his car, a tree’s shadow falls upon Blume as he sits in the driver’s seat. Staring straight ahead, Blume practically ignores his son who is facing him, speaking in mid-sentence, and although his facial expression is unclear, it is obvious that Blume is not mentally present within the car. Instead, he is drifting in his own thoughts, most probably assessing the negative aspects of his life. The placement of the Cadillac, shadow, and buildings, convey that although Blume is surrounded by wealth and family, he is still emotionally detached, and sits in the shadow of his own depression. Like Holden from The Catcher in the Rye, Blume’s riches do not make up for the lack of intimacy he craves from human love. When asked if his net worth exceeds 10 million dollars, Blume replies with a thoughtless “Yeah, I guess so.”, brushing off what is of high value to so many others. Blume seems to have no materialistic interests, and similarly to Holden, his hate cripples his ability to sustain healthy relationships and interferes with his love for his sons, wife, and eventually: his affair with Rosemary. The root of Blume’s depression is unclear, but it is evident that something heavy is preoccupying his thoughts, leading him to have an unhappy social life. A fitting object to add to this scene would be Holden’s genuine leather suitcase lying on the grass adjacent to the car. Like Blume, these suitcases have an extravagant exterior that conceals the baggage within.

Club list

This scene begins by showing us the front of Max Fischer’s yearbook. It goes on to show the viewer over 20 clubs that Max runs. The fact that he has so many clubs is very significant. Max tries to stay busy all the time because he does not want to think about the tragedy he still is not over: his mothers death. Though she is mentioned only a few times, it is clear that Max is still not over her passing away. That is why he stays busy and also why he holds so tightly to Rushmore. To Max, Rushmore represents his mother because it was her idea for Max to go to Rushmore. He had written a play and “my mother read it and felt I should go to Rushmore.” The fact that there are bees on the front of the yearbook is also significant. Bees cannot survive without a queen. Max’s mother was his queen and now that she is gone, he feels like he cannot survive. The idea of keeping busy to ignore reality is also shown in Never Let Me Go especially in the cottages. The kids read a lot to stay busy. So therefore I would add a book club to the list of clubs mentioned in this scene.

The scene which Ms.Cross and Max are talking is significant because it has shows the position Ms.Cross and Max are at in their relationship.The color of the scene is warm.The Yellow, green tree and the blue sky are all giving the audience a comfortable feeling. It is a metaphoric way to show that even though Ms. Cross is much older than Max, however, the relationship between Max and Ms. Cross is not weird but normal, comfortable; at least Max thinks is normal.In addition, there are two trees in the background. The interesting thing is the tree behind Max is stretching it's branches towards the tree at Ms. Cross side.Just the same as the desire Max has towards Ms. Cross. However, we can see in the picture that Ms.Cross put her left arm around her right arm which shows she is trying to keep the distance between she and Max. In the scene, Max wears a dark,formal suit with a tie while Ms. Cross wears a purple casual cloth.Also, he sits on the higher level of the benches and he is looking down at Ms. Cross. It shows that even though they have a huge age difference, however, their relationship is just like the other perfect relationship which the male in the relationship are on the top of the relationship and have more control of the relationship."Rushmore was my life. Now you are!" Max says this to Ms. Cross. However, it is a quote that a boyfriend will say to his girlfriend, but not a quote that a student will say to a teacher. It demonstrates that even though Ms. Cross thinks they should just be friend and that their relationship is inappropriate, however, Max has always considers it as an appropriate relationship just like the love between same age boys and girls. An object that will fits into this scene will be a bottle of alcohol. Just like in Cather in the Rye where Holden is trying to invite Morrow's mother to have a drink, it will shows the maturity of Max in a better way if Max

has a bottle of alcohol on his hand.