Bottle Rocket

Starring:Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson, Ned Dowd, Shea Fowler, Haley Miller, Robert Musgrave, Andrew Wilson (III), Brian Tenenbaum, Jenni Tooley, Temple Nash, Dipak Pallana, Darryl Cox, Stephen Dignan, Lumi Cavazos, Julie Mayfield, Don Phillips Jr., Anna Cifuentes, Donny Caicedo, Melinda Renna, Richard Reyes
Director: Wes Anderson
Studio: Sony Pictures
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

This quietly daffy comedy should have been an indie hit, but ended up ignored by audiences. Too bad; it's a wonderfully sustained caper movie about friends whose career choice is all wrong. Low-key Anthony (Luke Wilson) and high-strung Dignan (Owen C. Wilson--the two actors are brothers) are brought into a life of crime by Dignan's ambition to be a small-time thief. After a few amusingly laid-back trial burglaries, they (and a third buddy) find themselves over their heads when they hook up with an experienced crime boss (James Caan). Because this movie is so relentlessly deadpan, you really have to be dialed in to its brand of humor--but once there, Bottle Rocket shoots off plenty of sparks. Above all, Owen Wilson's portrayal of Dignan is a terrifically original comic creation; Dignan is so sincerely focused on his goals that he can't see how completely absurd his ideas are. Owen Wilson, who went on to supply similarly knuckle-headed performances in Armageddon and Permanent Midnight, wrote the screenplay with director Wes Anderson. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews:

Better every time........2007-06-27

I love Owen and Luke. Every time I watch this movie I enjoy it more and more. I am so glad that I was able to find it.

contained crazyness.......2007-04-15

Definit own if you have any luke or owen wilson films. Two middle class guys with a crazy outlook on life - that need something to do. luke commits himself to a mental hospital - at like 20 because he needs a break from life . . . then him and his friends rob a book store because they didnt want to live a normal life and wanted to gain street credit with this stunt - to get in this gang later - and make crime money. it all gets screwed up - check out punk drunk love ..
xoxo

Great Indie film!.......2007-04-15

This film is probably starting to make its way to mainstream with the commercial success of the Wilson brothers, Luke and Owen.
This film is perhaps one of the best independent films I have ever seen. Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson (who co-wrote with Owen W. and directed the film) paired on several films of less-than-popular stature. All of them are quirky at worst and extremely entertaining at best. As a note, I would recommend all of them as spectacular, with slight hesitation on "The Royal Tannenbaums".
This film in particular was a showcase of how good writing can make up for subpar acting. The actors in this movie were not great, but the story, the words, they were fantastic. Basically, a guy gets bored with life and wants some adventure and he drags his buddies along as he attempts to become a criminal. Things don't go as planned, but the results are very funny.
I am not a huge fan of big hollywood type films, so I have lost interest in most of the films of the Wilson brothers, but this one shows brilliance when they were unknown.
A very intelligent, funny film. It is not a slapstick comedy, so don't rent it if you are expecting "Tommy Boy" or "Happy Gilmore". If you like quirky comedies, comedies that make you think, in the vein of "Waiting for Guffman", "Drop Dead Gorgeous", "A Mighty Wind" or "Rushmore", then this is a perfect fit for you; buy it. If you want a 3 Stooges type comedy, you can look elsewhere; this one is more low key.

"You're calling me a bully? Here's a bully for you!".......2007-04-05

Even though he's only made four movies, Wes Anderson is one of the most talented, interesting, and quirky directors in the business. He's still young, but with only four films under his belt he's already become a synonym for a very distinct type of filmmaking, e.g. "That movie was kind of Wes Andersonish." Having seen the final three films of the Anderson canon (RUSHMORE, THE ROYAL TENEBAUMS, and THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZISSOU), I finally had the opportunity to see Anderson's debut feature, BOTTLE ROCKET. The movie begins rather slowly, but by the end I was laughing my head off and decided BOTTLE ROCKET was my second favorite film next to THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZISSOU.

The movie was released early in 1996 and though not as technically strong as Anderson's later pictures, it illustrates the genius of filmmaking that he is. In addition to being Anderson's major directorial debut, the movie is also known as the film that catapulted the Wilson brothers, Owen and Luke, into superstardom. Luke Wilson portrays Anthony Adams, a young man who is struggling with his identity and purpose in life. After taking time to recuperate at a voluntary mental hospital, Anthony returns home and meets up with his childhood friend, Dignan (Owen Wilson). Anthony is looking forward to settling down and getting on with life while Dignan has bigger plans for both of them. Dignan wants Anthony to enjoy life, too, but through a totally different means than he imagines: a life of pleasure gained from committing crime. At first, Anthony isn't willing to join Dignan's wild scheme, but Dignan is persistent and breaks through Anthony's reluctance and gets him to join him on a crime spree to impress Dignan's former boss, Mr. Henry, a supposed local crime lord. Dignan also gets another friend, Bob Mapplethorpe (Robert Musgrave) to join the scheme. While Dignan goes about planning the caper, Bob tries to fend off his bully brother John, aka "Future Man" (Andrew Wilson--the overlooked Wilson brother) and Anthony falls in love with a Latino motel housekeeper named Inez (Lumi Cavazos).
The film leads up to the caper itself, an event that is both hilarious and heartbreaking.

All of the actors do a great job. I particularly liked Andrew Wilson (whose real childhood nickname was Future Man because he was seen as being so serious and looking to the future) and Kumar Pallana who portrays Kumar, a supposed expert safe-cracker that Dignan adds to his crime team.

Not everyone is going to enjoy watching BOTTLE ROCKET. The movie has a very odd pacing, even for a Wes Anderson film. It's evident that both the director and cast were adjusting to making a major picture. Also, since this is a Wes Anderson picture, not everyone is going to like, enjoy, or even understand the humor. There are no cheap gags or easy jokes. Instead, the comedy can best be described as intellectual-situational. In short, it's kind-of Wes Andersonish. A must-see for fans of Wes Anderson or any of the Wilson brothers as well as anyone who likes quirky dramatic-comedies.

Good movie.......2007-01-23

I liked this movie. I wished there was audio commentary. If there is a Criterion Collection available I'd get it. But I have to settle for this one...

Charlie Rose with Bill Murray; Wes Anderson (January 29, 1999)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Bill Murray; Wes Anderson (January 29, 1999)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Description

Bill Murray talks about his film Rushmore, his strategy for choosing projects, his encounters with blockbuster movies, and his experiences in the entertainment industry from Saturday Night Live to Legal Eagles. Then, Wes Anderson talks about directing Rushmore and Bottle Rocket, writing with Owen Wilson, and directing Bill Murray and Jason Schwartzman.

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