The color red or any shade of it is seen at least once in almost every character in the film. This is most significantly shown once the children are grown up. Instances where characters wear red in any form are in Pagoda's pants (the house assistant), Royal's shirt under his suit, Chas and his two son's red athletic suit and many other instances. At first I thought red could symbolize alarm or safety in correlation to Chas and his obsession with being protected. However, then I realized many other characters wore it for different references. I believe red as whole in this film goes to symbolize love and its quest for it. With love comes comfort, acceptance, appreciation, forgiveness and safety; these are all things all the characters were looking for in one way or another.
Another way costuming was significant in The Royal Tenenbaum was through its drastic age disconnect between the apparel and real age of character. For example, in the starting montage of the film it shows Chas, Richie and Eli all in very mature outfits while they are still just little kids. Chas wore a suit and tie as he was ran a business, Richie had professional tennis apparel and Eli has formal school attire. As the film shifts to when they are older, the almost opposite happens. Eli is mostly in his cowboy costume like a little boy, Richie is still wearing his tennis head band as though he get over the past and Chas in silly athletic wear because of his obsession with safety.
In essence, its almost as though all the kids grew up too fast they never got to really live their childhood so it is expressed through their attire. It also goes to show how they were never able to solidly establish the love between their family and partners therefore symbolizing red.
What do you think red (or any shade of it) symbolizes?
Another way costuming was significant in The Royal Tenenbaum was through its drastic age disconnect between the apparel and real age of character. For example, in the starting montage of the film it shows Chas, Richie and Eli all in very mature outfits while they are still just little kids. Chas wore a suit and tie as he was ran a business, Richie had professional tennis apparel and Eli has formal school attire. As the film shifts to when they are older, the almost opposite happens. Eli is mostly in his cowboy costume like a little boy, Richie is still wearing his tennis head band as though he get over the past and Chas in silly athletic wear because of his obsession with safety.
In essence, its almost as though all the kids grew up too fast they never got to really live their childhood so it is expressed through their attire. It also goes to show how they were never able to solidly establish the love between their family and partners therefore symbolizing red.
What do you think red (or any shade of it) symbolizes?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI agree with both of you. I think red was a really important symbol throughout the whole movie because it ultimately shows the transition from being a disconnected to a loving family. Red can also symbolize hatred, and I believe that Chas wears the red track suit during most of the movie to show his hatred for his father. Red has a lot of meanings, but this is just my take on it.
ReplyDeleteI like this blog because I never actually noticed the significance of color in the characters' apparel. In my opinion, red symbolized different, albeit similar things for everyone. For example, for Chas and his family, it symbolized urgency. For Pagoda, it symbolized love. For Richie, it symbolized the blood and suicidal thoughts (which we later saw in the movie when he attempted to kill himself by slitting his wrists.) In the end, I agree with you that although red symbolized different things for everyone, it still came to symbolize the ultimate idea of love, which everyone in the character was lacking in one form or another.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the Tenenbaum children might have grown up too fast so when adulthood actually him them everything flipped. In answer to your question I think at the beginning of the film red does symbolize alarm yet at the end of the film Chaz reunites with his father and alarm seems to turn into love.
ReplyDelete