Premise - An under achieving public school student (Jason Schwartzman) falls for a 1st grade teacher (Olivia Williams) at his prep school. His efforts to woo her are hampered by his own incompetence and his best friend, a millionaire steel plant owner (Bill Murray) who has also fallen for the comely teacher. I wasn't sure what to expect from Rushmore. I had heard various good things about it and I knew that the team behind it had gone on to make last years 'The Royal Tenenbaums', but I wasn't sure what kind of film it was going to be. I went in blind if you will. In the end Rushmore was something of a pleasant surprise, coming over as a nice little quirky comedy, with a dynamite script and some endearing performances. Critical to the films success is the central performance by Jason Schwartzman as Max Fischer. Fischer is a pupil who is in so many clubs and groups at his school that his grades are suffering dramatically. His main ambition is to go to his school, he seems content to spend the rest of his day's patrolling the campus and chairing his various clubs. A strange kid to be sure and Schwartzman plays him brilliantly. It's a bravado performance, full of neat little ticks and a glorious smug attitude. Schwartzman brings this character to life so much that you want to reach into the screen and slap him for being so stupid. It's a performance that I wouldn't have expected from someone as young as Schwartzman and it's all the more impressive considering his relative inexperience. Bill Murray plays Max's friend and millionaire Herman J. Blume. Like Schwartzman, Murray is excellent. Blume is a pathetic loser and Murray (who has played his share of losers in the past) has it down to a tee. Murray is so versatile as a comedy actor and can turn his hand to anything from slapstick to Rushmore's quirky smart style of comedy. You really feel for Blume (and sometimes you don't!) in the film and it's all down to Murray's quality as an actor. Aside from outstanding performances by the cast Rushmore triumphs in the writing department as well. The script is as smart, sharp and witty as I have seen for some time. Max's pithy put downs, Blume's nice line in sarcasm and the foul mouthed rants of a Scottish bully are just some of the highlights in an excellently written movie. The film is dripping with quotable lines, a lifetimes worth of email signatures is on offer. If Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson keep up this quality of writing in 'The Royal Tenebaums' then I can't wait to see it. Rushmore really is a hidden gem. Something that's all to rare these days, a teenage comedy that's smart, genuinely funny and doesn't have to stoop to crude gross out gags to get the audience laughing.

8/10 for Rushmore. Poster Quote - Rush and get Rushmore!