Rushmore (1998)
91%RT Audience Score: 91%
Awards & Nominations: 16 wins & 16 nominations
This cult favorite is a quirky coming of age story, with fine, off-kilter performances from Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray.
Rushmore is like a quirky indie film that you can’t help but fall in love with. The oddball characters and their antics will have you laughing out loud, but there’s also a deeper message about the line between self-delusion and reality. Plus, Bill Murray gives one of his most uproarious performances since Groundhog Day. It’s a heavy-hearted comedy with a light touch that will leave you feeling warm and fuzzy inside.
Production Company(ies)
Warner Bros., Heyday Films, 1492 Pictures,
Distributor
Touchstone Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Wide)
Filming Location(s)
Delmar Stadium – 2020 Mangum Road, Houston, Texas, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for language and brief nudity
Year of Release
1999
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:DTS Dolby Digital SDDS
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:1h 33m
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Language(s):English, Spanish, Latin, French
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Feb 5, 1999 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 18, 2000
Genre(s)
Comedy
Keyword(s)
starring Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Olivia Williams, Seymour Cassel, Brian Cox, Mason Gamble, directed by Wes Anderson, written by Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson, comedy, R-rated, box office gross $17.1M, Touchstone Pictures, produced by Barry Mendel and Paul Schiff, reviewed by Anthony Lane, Desson Thomson, Jonathan Foreman, John Hartl, Andrew Pulver, Jay Boyar, Cole Smithey, Sophie Charara, David Walsh, David Sterritt, Leah Rozen, directed by Wes Anderson, produced by Barry Mendel and Paul Schiff, written by Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson, MPAA rating R, quirky, coming of age story, off-kilter performances, cult favorite, high-grade yuks, ironic romance, fine performances, odd couple, menacing edge, human and charming, inventive, heavy-hearted comedy, touching comic fable, finely-judged parable, scholastic and romantic woes, ambitious teenager, beautiful first-grade teacher, prep school, love triangle, war for attention, advice, complicated situation, comedy-drama, soundtrack by Mark Mothersbaugh, British Invasion songs, indie cinema, respected actor, Best Director, Best Supporting Male awards, Golden Globe nomination, 30 coolest films ever, deep-focus widescreen compositions, unusual clarity, vividness, humour
Worldwide gross: $17,196,103
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $30,867,484
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,536
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 3,366,138
US/Canada gross: $17,105,219
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $30,704,345
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,268
US/Canada opening weekend: $43,666
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $78,382
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,033
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $9,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $16,155,251
Production budget ranking: 1,478
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $8,699,603
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $6,012,631
ROI to date (est.): 24%
ROI ranking: 1,269
Bill Murray – Mr. Herman J. Blume
Olivia Williams – Miss Rosemary Cross
Seymour Cassel – Bert Fischer
Brian Cox – Dr. Nelson Guggenheim
Mason Gamble – Dirk Calloway
Director – Wes Anderson
Producers – Barry Mendel, Paul Schiff
Writers – Owen Wilson, Wes Anderson
Director(s)
Wes Anderson
Writer(s)
Owen Wilson, Wes Anderson
Producer(s)
Barry Mendel, Paul Schiff
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
16 wins & 16 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (104) | Top Critics (33) | Fresh (93) | Rotten (11)
Schwartzman is cautious but stubbornly optimistic, while Murray is possessed by the mania of near-despair… They make the best and most disconcerting odd couple that American movies have produced in a long while.
March 17, 2014
Anthony Lane
New Yorker
TOP CRITIC
Rushmore is an almost indefinable genre of its own. A comedy with a menacing edge? An ironic romance? Hard to call. Anderson, the director and co-writer, and Wilson, co-writer, have a vision like no one else’s.
March 17, 2014
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
TOP CRITIC
A quirky, sometimes hilarious and often touching comic fable.
March 17, 2014
Jonathan Foreman
New York Post
TOP CRITIC
There’s an unshakable confidence about this coming-of-age fable that matches that of its central character, Max Fischer.
March 17, 2014 | Rating: 4/4
John Hartl
Seattle Times
TOP CRITIC
Rushmore offers more than simply a series of high-grade yuks; it’s a finely-judged parable on the line between self-delusion and reality.
March 17, 2014 | Rating: 4/5
Andrew Pulver
Guardian
TOP CRITIC
If happiness is finding something you love to do and doing it forever, one of my somethings might just be watching this oddly uproarious little flick.
March 17, 2014
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
Precocious but not precious, “Rushmore” is heavy-hearted comedy with a light touch.
April 24, 2022 | Rating: B+
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com
The script is so charming and quippy that it’s not hard to see why this is still many fans’ favourite…
April 28, 2021
Sophie Charara
NME
Anderson and Wilson, who attended the University of Texas together, have made a film with something very human and charming about it.
February 16, 2021
David Walsh
World Socialist Web Site
Anderson fulfills the promise of his inventive Bottle Rocket with this quirky, often hilarious comedy, and Murray gives his most uproarious performance since the groundbreaking Groundhog Day.
March 17, 2014 | Rating: 4/4
David Sterritt
Christian Science Monitor
A gloriously inventive little comedy about the scholastic and romantic woes of a 15-year-old student at a private academy.
March 17, 2014
Leah Rozen
People Magazine
Just when you expect the film to do something normal, it takes off like Murray — riffing on reality as only he, and filmmaker Anderson, can.
March 17, 2014 | Rating: 3/4
Dan Webster
Spokesman-Review (Washington)…
Plot
Max Fischer is a precocious 15-year-old whose reason for living is his attendance at Rushmore, a private school where he’s not doing well in any of his classes, but where he’s the king of extracurricular activities – from being in the beekeeping society to writing and producing plays, there’s very little after school he doesn’t do. His life begins to change, however, when he finds out he’s on academic probation, and when he stumbles into love with Miss Cross, a pretty teacher of the elementary school at Rushmore. Added to the mix is his friendship with Herman Blume, wealthy industrialist and father to boys who attend the school, and who also finds himself attracted to Miss Cross. Max’s fate becomes inextricably tied to this odd love triangle, and how he sets about resolving it is the story in the film.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Bill Murray was originally hesitant to take on the role of Herman Blume in Rushmore, but was convinced by his agent to read the script and ended up working for scale, earning only around $9,000 for his performance.
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