Bottle RocketJust like people, no plan is perfect. Bottle Rocket is a crime comedy about a trio of unlikely thieves who bungle their way through a robbery as an initiation to a larger score. After being released from a voluntary mental health facility, Anthony Adams (Luke Wilson) is recruited by his dim-witted yet indefatigable buddy, Dignan (Owen Wilson), into this scheme--complete with an overconfident 75-year plan--in order to impress his former landscaping boss (and presumed crime boss), Mr. Abe Henry (James Caan). Dignan recruits a financially well-off driver named Bob Mapplethorpe (Robert Musgrave) and without further ado, they begin fantasizing about their glorious life of crime yet to come.
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Bottle Rocket is the first feature length film directed by Wes Anderson, expanded upon from his short film of the same name. It was co-written by Owen Wilson, and laid the groundwork for their careers. In Bottle Rocket, you can see the formative aspects of these talented men, along with star Luke Wilson; and they have continued to work together since then in movies like The Royal Tenenbaums. Bottle Rocket was something of a cult hit, and came to recognition largely by critical word-of-mouth, including high praise from Martin Scorsese, who proclaimed it as one of his favorite movies of the Nineties. Since then, Wes Anderson's movies have become both critical and commercial successes, beloved classics ranging from The Darjeeling Limited (a favorite of mine) to The Grand Budapest Hotel. What makes Bottle Rocket so special today is how one can identify the elements that would become hallmarks in Anderson's following creative works. Much of Anderson's films are likened to "storybooks" in presentation and plot, yet Bottle Rocket also shares qualities found in many first films by talented filmmakers. The buddy/odd couple dynamic between Anthony and Dignan reminds me of Dante and Randall from Kevin Smith's Clerks, and the down-to-earth and natural look at life in the southwest United States is reminiscent of Richard Linklater's Slacker. (Although Bottle Rocket is set in Arizona, it was filmed in Texas, and both Anderson and Linklater are natives of Houston.) While the tone of Bottle Rocket foreshadows Anderson's later films, his signature style that has come to define his movies is only hinted at here. In this way, Bottle Rocket even reminds me of Terrence Malick's first feature, Badlands. (This becomes more apparent when you compare Bottle Rocket to The Royal Tenenbaums, and Badlands to Days of Heaven.) The reason for these comparisons is to emphasize that contemporary fans of Wes Anderson's movies may find that Bottle Rocket carries itself in a way that only vaguely resembles his later movies. Yet true fans should appreciate the seeds planted here which germinated into Anderson's iconic auteur style in the years to come.
The Wilson brothers--at least Owen and Luke--also establish their acting personas in Bottle Rocket. Anthony is a sensitive yet troubled young man looking for direction. He committed himself voluntarily to a mental health center due to exhaustion, which his cynical younger sister, Grace (Shea Fowler), chides him for, claiming that he's "never worked a day in his life". Anthony's exhaustion comes from a spiritual malaise. He recalls that in his last relationship, he found that he was apathetic about the minutia of the day-to-day life. Later, while the trio is lying low at a motel, Anthony espies a lovely housekeeper named Inez (Lumi Cavazos) while swimming, and he immediately fixates on her. He awkwardly follows her around, even helping her collect towels from the rooms of other residents--even before they've checked out--and carries on a one-sided conversation with her, as her English isn't that polished yet. In Inez, Anthony sees a more stable life filled with love and warmth for himself, far more than he's gotten with Dignan and his muddied plan to rob places and "get lucky", as he puts it. Yet Anthony projects his anxieties onto Inez, seeing her as a kind of savior to his own deep-seated doubts and anxiety. Consider his passive-aggressive jealousy when they go to a Spanish-speaking watering hole, and Inez carries on a conversation with a handsome friend (in Spanish), as Anthony sits by, uninvolved. Anthony immediately sets to criticizing the young man because he is threatened, even if Inez doesn't understand him. Anthony appears at first glance to be the most stable of the batch--ironic, given his history--but this moment reveals that he still has a lot of growing up to do. (This bruised, sensitive soul character with emotional baggage would be revisited by Luke Wilson almost immediately afterward in The Royal Tenenbaums.) Dignan, on the other hand, deftly walks that fine line between being an absurd caricature of arrogance and unshakable naivete and ebullience--a performance that would also foreshadow many of Owen Wilson's later characters, often played for comedy. The first impression the audience gets of Dignan is that of a well-intentioned fool, completely oblivious to the fact that Anthony's stay at the hospital is voluntary as he tries to bust him out. His approach to planning a heist as a kind of "business plan" seems like something a child would conceive after they listened to their first TED talk about how to succeed. He withholds key details about his connection to Mr. Henry to better sell Anthony and Bob on his carefully scripted plan, describing his erstwhile boss and co-workers as his "crew", while implying that they are all professional crooks. Like Anthony, Dignan has suffering in his past. It's clear that despite his energy and enthusiasm, he is looked down on as a buffoon and a failure, and he knows this. This is felt strongest after Dignan comes to visit Anthony some time after they have a blowout, asking for forgiveness in his proud way while riding a two-sizes-too-small moped and wearing a yellow jumpsuit. Bob's elitist and abusive brother, Jon (Andrew Wilson)--who gets called "Future Man", for some reason--doesn't shirk from the opportunity to mock Dignan, telling his crony that this guy "used to mow the lawn" while snickering. Dignan has aspects to his character that make him appear unstable--the out of place military haircut, his all-too-willing attitude to make a few bucks by robbing a bookstore at gunpoint, then spending the take on fireworks--but despite that, he exudes a charm and even helplessness that makes it evident that, like Anthony, he needs a little kindness and support, too. Like with his brother, these characteristics bleed through into other collaborations between Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson; just compare Dignan with his Francis Whitman from The Darjeeling Limited, and you'll see what I mean. Even though Anthony and Dignan are not brothers, the fraternity between the real life brothers who play them speaks to a bond that makes their friendship something special.
Recommended for: Fans of a charming and touching comedy about a few men who fantasize about the "glamour" of crime, yet find new meaning in their lives instead through their missteps. Bottle Rocket leans heavily toward humor over violence--despite guns getting waived around often--but compared to other films by Anderson, it has some mature language peppered throughout that makes the movie inappropriate for children. It is also best suited for audiences that have already been exposed to Anderson's other movies by this point.
The Wilson brothers--at least Owen and Luke--also establish their acting personas in Bottle Rocket. Anthony is a sensitive yet troubled young man looking for direction. He committed himself voluntarily to a mental health center due to exhaustion, which his cynical younger sister, Grace (Shea Fowler), chides him for, claiming that he's "never worked a day in his life". Anthony's exhaustion comes from a spiritual malaise. He recalls that in his last relationship, he found that he was apathetic about the minutia of the day-to-day life. Later, while the trio is lying low at a motel, Anthony espies a lovely housekeeper named Inez (Lumi Cavazos) while swimming, and he immediately fixates on her. He awkwardly follows her around, even helping her collect towels from the rooms of other residents--even before they've checked out--and carries on a one-sided conversation with her, as her English isn't that polished yet. In Inez, Anthony sees a more stable life filled with love and warmth for himself, far more than he's gotten with Dignan and his muddied plan to rob places and "get lucky", as he puts it. Yet Anthony projects his anxieties onto Inez, seeing her as a kind of savior to his own deep-seated doubts and anxiety. Consider his passive-aggressive jealousy when they go to a Spanish-speaking watering hole, and Inez carries on a conversation with a handsome friend (in Spanish), as Anthony sits by, uninvolved. Anthony immediately sets to criticizing the young man because he is threatened, even if Inez doesn't understand him. Anthony appears at first glance to be the most stable of the batch--ironic, given his history--but this moment reveals that he still has a lot of growing up to do. (This bruised, sensitive soul character with emotional baggage would be revisited by Luke Wilson almost immediately afterward in The Royal Tenenbaums.) Dignan, on the other hand, deftly walks that fine line between being an absurd caricature of arrogance and unshakable naivete and ebullience--a performance that would also foreshadow many of Owen Wilson's later characters, often played for comedy. The first impression the audience gets of Dignan is that of a well-intentioned fool, completely oblivious to the fact that Anthony's stay at the hospital is voluntary as he tries to bust him out. His approach to planning a heist as a kind of "business plan" seems like something a child would conceive after they listened to their first TED talk about how to succeed. He withholds key details about his connection to Mr. Henry to better sell Anthony and Bob on his carefully scripted plan, describing his erstwhile boss and co-workers as his "crew", while implying that they are all professional crooks. Like Anthony, Dignan has suffering in his past. It's clear that despite his energy and enthusiasm, he is looked down on as a buffoon and a failure, and he knows this. This is felt strongest after Dignan comes to visit Anthony some time after they have a blowout, asking for forgiveness in his proud way while riding a two-sizes-too-small moped and wearing a yellow jumpsuit. Bob's elitist and abusive brother, Jon (Andrew Wilson)--who gets called "Future Man", for some reason--doesn't shirk from the opportunity to mock Dignan, telling his crony that this guy "used to mow the lawn" while snickering. Dignan has aspects to his character that make him appear unstable--the out of place military haircut, his all-too-willing attitude to make a few bucks by robbing a bookstore at gunpoint, then spending the take on fireworks--but despite that, he exudes a charm and even helplessness that makes it evident that, like Anthony, he needs a little kindness and support, too. Like with his brother, these characteristics bleed through into other collaborations between Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson; just compare Dignan with his Francis Whitman from The Darjeeling Limited, and you'll see what I mean. Even though Anthony and Dignan are not brothers, the fraternity between the real life brothers who play them speaks to a bond that makes their friendship something special.
Recommended for: Fans of a charming and touching comedy about a few men who fantasize about the "glamour" of crime, yet find new meaning in their lives instead through their missteps. Bottle Rocket leans heavily toward humor over violence--despite guns getting waived around often--but compared to other films by Anderson, it has some mature language peppered throughout that makes the movie inappropriate for children. It is also best suited for audiences that have already been exposed to Anderson's other movies by this point.