Dysfunction In The Royal Tenenbaums

Dysfunction Makes or Breaks Families

Wes Anderson portrayed the importance of family through the words written on Royal Tenenbaums grave, “Died tragically rescuing his family from the wreckage of a destroyed sinking battleship” [Anderson]. Every family has their own hardships that either creates a never-ending cycle of conflict or the acceptance of the dysfunction can make the family stronger. In addition, each member brings his or her own individual quirk and irreplaceable quality that when combined creates a family that works in their own unique way. Some stories and films like to utilize the theme of dysfunctional families to teach viewers to accept their family members for who they truly are. The films, The Royal Tenenbaums [2001], directed

Anderson uses visual art to enhance his storytelling past writing with deliberate color schemes to create a pleasing composition that evokes an emotion or gives more insight into the characters. He visually narrates the story with book chapters and puzzle board titles as well as keeps that characters in the same costume throughout most of the film to represent the characters are stuck in the past. The humor is tragic and dark by focusing on trivial matters in important sad scenes. For example, while waiting in the emergency room after Richie attempts suicide the mother is focused more on the fact that she just realized Margot is a smoker. Lastly, the film shows an unconventional love story of incest between Richie and his adopted sister

When the son of Royal, Richie tries to commit suicide, the viewers see how all the family members come together to support and take care of one another. Royal, finally remorseful for his mistakes realizes that in order to redeem himself he had to put his families needs first before his own, even if he had to take himself completely out of the equation. He learned the valuable lesson when it comes to repairing a broken family. His family was stuck in a period of extended adolescence due to his abandonment, as well as his inability to accept both adulthood and what it took to be a father. The viewers are able to comprehend that without Royal the family would be locked into an unbreakable pattern of dysfunction and that he was the key to the other characters growth and