Wes Anderson Nostalgia
Wes Anderson is a highly revered director of many notable films including but not limited to, The Royal Tenenbaums and Fantastic Mr. Fox. These films (and other’s by Anderson) display some of the same archetypal characters, not by coincidence. In these films one will notice that both of the father figures are figuratively absent. The audience will also notice that there is one son that desires his father’s approval while another young character gets the fathers attention and affection. There is also a maternal figure who loves her husband but knows that the father is a bad figure for the children and ‘separates’ from the father. These home/family/parental issues are not fiction of Anderson’s imagination but rather personal experience and the product of his nostalgia.
Anderson’s incorporation of home problems seems to start with that of parents being separated. When Anderson was in his formative years (eight years old) his parents divorced, traumatizing him. Due to the divorce, Anderson was raised by his mother while stopping by to see his father on…show more content… One may not see the films conclusions as closure but further inspection will reveal that the ending of the films are upbeat, reuniting the families. The films provide an opportunity for Anderson to play out his idealization of what his childhood may have been like. For example, Royal stole from Chas and then abandoned the family; this is one of the darkest fears a child can have when their parents are getting divorced. The movies include all the pain that Anderson felt as a child while also providing virtual closure. The closure in The Royal Tenenbaums is that of the kids having supportive parents that are not fighting and finally getting a father that they always desired; a present father, one that would get them a dog (the little things an ideal father