Rushmore (1998), by Wes Anderson, and Election (1999), by Alexander Payne, are two films from the 90s that explore adolescence and power dynamics within the school environment, each in its own way and with a unique style. In Rushmore, we follow the life of Max Fischer, an eccentric and hyperactive student who, despite his poor academic performance, is the president of numerous clubs and extracurricular activities at a prestigious school. The story becomes more complex when Max falls in love with a teacher and enters an intense competition with a businessman, who is also interested in her. In Election, Alexander Payne tells the story of Tracy Flick, an ambitious student running for student council president, and her teacher, Jim McAllister, who sees in Tracy everything he despises about easy success and decides to sabotage her by encouraging another student to run.

For Wes Anderson, Rushmore represented a turning point, marking the beginning of an aesthetic that would define his entire filmography. Anderson presents a stylized universe, with vibrant colors and symmetry in every frame, bringing an emotional depth that made this film one of his most remarkable works and a precursor to his future films, where satire and melancholic humor intersect. Themes of eccentricity, obsession, and the sense of belonging are explored here, with Max Fischer as the perfect example of a restless youth: driven by a constant quest for acceptance and identity, he tries to fill his existential void with a whirlwind of activities and passions, all while confronting the harsh realities of rejection and failure.

In Election, Alexander Payne explores sarcastic, sharp, and incisive humor, characteristics that would go on to define much of his work. The film examines ambition, corruption, and the impact of morality within the school context, addressing power dynamics as deeply as it does humorously. Tracy Flick, the driven young student, has become an icon of unrestrained ambition and student politics, determined to overcome any obstacle in her way, while teacher Jim represents the disillusionment and hypocrisy of adulthood. Election is a landmark in Payne's cinema for how it exposes human flaws and complexities, putting morality into perspective and satirizing the American dream.

Restless Youth is, therefore, the thread that connects these two films, uniting Anderson and Payne’s visions of the dilemmas and contradictions that define adolescence. Both films capture the tension between expectations and reality, with Max Fischer trying to be greater than he truly is and Tracy Flick pushing ethical boundaries to achieve success. Although with different approaches—Anderson's poetic and stylized humor versus Payne's direct sarcasm—both filmmakers reveal a rebellious and ambitious youth, in search of something greater, constantly seeking acceptance and caught between the desire to become something and the weight of simply existing.

(Curatorship of Fábio Sequeira)