Since coming onto the scene with films like
Bottle Rocket and
Rushmore, filmmaker Wes Anderson has not strayed far from the signature quirky, yet thoughtful, style that's been with him since Film One. Some people have coined him a one-trick-pony, but I happen to think that he shows some emotion growth with his latest film,
The Darjeeling Limited. While it features his standard visual style and offbeat jokes that seem to sneak up on you rather than make you laugh out loud, he seems to be trying to make us care about the characters a lot more here. This is not his funniest film, nor is it his best.
The Darjeeling Limited is, however, easily his most heartfelt film.
The film takes a rather loose and random plot structure that despite a screenplay credited to Anderson, Roman Coppola and Jason Schwartzman, almost plays like it was made up as the shooting of the film went on. The bare bones plot concerns three brothers who have not spoken or seen each other since their father's funeral a year ago. They include control freak, Francis (Owen Wilson), whose head is covered in bandages after a recent motorcycle accident, soon-to-be family man Peter (Adrien Brody), who is still struggling over the fact that he's going to be a father in just a couple weeks, and love-lorn Jack (Jason Schwartzman), who recently had a fling with an ex-girlfriend in Paris. (Which we witness in a short 13 minute film that precedes the main feature called
Hotel Chavalier.) Francis has brought them together for a "spiritual journey" across India. He has an air-tight itinerary so that they can hit all the temples and mystical sights in India, and hopefully come closer together during the trip. He also has a secret agenda - He plans to track down their mother (Anjelica Huston), who has run off to the Himalayas to become a nun, and didn't show up for their father's funeral. As they board the train that will take the three across India, they will be faced with many emotions and questions, the most pressing one being if they could be friends if they weren't brothers.
Strange as it is to say,
The Darjeeling Limited is about baggage, both literal and emotional. All three of the brothers carry a massive amount of baggage on their trek across India, which often makes their quest look clumsy and awkward. They also have brought a lot of emotional baggage with them, which is evident almost from the moment they are reunited for the first time in a year in their private room on the train. Francis has organized their entire trip almost step by step, and even goes so far as to order for his two brothers when they visit the dining car. This immediately brings back feelings for Peter and Jack as to why they haven't seen each other the past year. The baggage continues to grow as the trip continues. Peter buys a poisonous snake which he keeps in a box, which adds to the already massive pile that they are carrying around with them. The emotional baggage builds as well, and it is only a matter of time before tempers will begin to flare between the three. All the holy places and meditation techniques won't do them any good unless they learn to let go. This is the key message of the film, and it is illustrated beautifully in a scene late in the film where they are running late for the next train. I won't ruin it for you, but it is a well-deserved moment for all of the characters.
Some critics have accused the film of being shallow, and of not digging deep enough into the three brothers for us to get attached to them. This is certainly true in some ways, as we don't learn anything about them that we don't hear about in dialogue. At the same time, I believe this is intentional. Their relationship is strained after all, and they would not exactly be open with one another. They tell each other the basic parts of their lives, keep secrets from each other, and don't even seem to trust each other that much. Anderson is able to bring out some laughs and drama out of his characters, and the fact that even though they are brothers, they are really nothing alike. Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, and Jason Schwartzman are all fine individually in their performances, and if they never seem to quite reach that brotherly level of bonding or connection, well maybe it's because they aren't supposed to. Even though they have become much closer by the end than they were when we first met them, we get the feeling that they still have a long way to go before they can see "brother" as something more than just a seven letter word. Like the best films, there are no easy answers to be found here, and the problems of the characters cannot be solved in the 90 minutes this movie runs.
There are a few big laughs scattered throughout the film, and a lot of moments that shine on their own and would probably make a great short film. The question is do they come together to complete a whole satisfying experience. As I mentioned before, this is not Anderson's best film. The laughs are few and far between, and there are some small stretches where my interest waned a little. But, I've found myself thinking a lot about
The Darjeeling Limited after I saw it. This is a very subtle movie that has a lot to offer, even though it may not look like it while you are watching it. This is not a movie that wears its heart or its emotion on its sleeve. I'm recommending it, but this is not a movie for everyone. It may help if you have brothers yourself, and to think back on your own relationship. When all is said and done,
The Darjeeling Limited is a film journey worth taking.
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Since coming onto the scene with films like Bottle Rocket and Rushmore, filmmaker Wes Anderson has not strayed far from the signature quirky, yet thoughtful, style that's been with him since Film One. Some people have coined him a one-trick-pony, but I happen to think that he shows some emotion growth with his latest film, The Darjeeling Limited. While it features his standard visual style and offbeat jokes that seem to sneak up on you rather than make you laugh out loud, he seems to be trying to make us care about the characters a lot more here. This is not his funniest film, nor is it his best. The Darjeeling Limited is, however, easily his most heartfelt film.
The film takes a rather loose and random plot structure that despite a screenplay credited to Anderson, Roman Coppola and Jason Schwartzman, almost plays like it was made up as the shooting of the film went on. The bare bones plot concerns three brothers who have not spoken or seen each other since their father's funeral a year ago. They include control freak, Francis (Owen Wilson), whose head is covered in bandages after a recent motorcycle accident, soon-to-be family man Peter (Adrien Brody), who is still struggling over the fact that he's going to be a father in just a couple weeks, and love-lorn Jack (Jason Schwartzman), who recently had a fling with an ex-girlfriend in Paris. (Which we witness in a short 13 minute film that precedes the main feature called Hotel Chavalier.) Francis has brought them together for a "spiritual journey" across India. He has an air-tight itinerary so that they can hit all the temples and mystical sights in India, and hopefully come closer together during the trip. He also has a secret agenda - He plans to track down their mother (Anjelica Huston), who has run off to the Himalayas to become a nun, and didn't show up for their father's funeral. As they board the train that will take the three across India, they will be faced with many emotions and questions, the most pressing one being if they could be friends if they weren't brothers.
Strange as it is to say, The Darjeeling Limited is about baggage, both literal and emotional. All three of the brothers carry a massive amount of baggage on their trek across India, which often makes their quest look clumsy and awkward. They also have brought a lot of emotional baggage with them, which is evident almost from the moment they are reunited for the first time in a year in their private room on the train. Francis has organized their entire trip almost step by step, and even goes so far as to order for his two brothers when they visit the dining car. This immediately brings back feelings for Peter and Jack as to why they haven't seen each other the past year. The baggage continues to grow as the trip continues. Peter buys a poisonous snake which he keeps in a box, which adds to the already massive pile that they are carrying around with them. The emotional baggage builds as well, and it is only a matter of time before tempers will begin to flare between the three. All the holy places and meditation techniques won't do them any good unless they learn to let go. This is the key message of the film, and it is illustrated beautifully in a scene late in the film where they are running late for the next train. I won't ruin it for you, but it is a well-deserved moment for all of the characters.
Some critics have accused the film of being shallow, and of not digging deep enough into the three brothers for us to get attached to them. This is certainly true in some ways, as we don't learn anything about them that we don't hear about in dialogue. At the same time, I believe this is intentional. Their relationship is strained after all, and they would not exactly be open with one another. They tell each other the basic parts of their lives, keep secrets from each other, and don't even seem to trust each other that much. Anderson is able to bring out some laughs and drama out of his characters, and the fact that even though they are brothers, they are really nothing alike. Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, and Jason Schwartzman are all fine individually in their performances, and if they never seem to quite reach that brotherly level of bonding or connection, well maybe it's because they aren't supposed to. Even though they have become much closer by the end than they were when we first met them, we get the feeling that they still have a long way to go before they can see "brother" as something more than just a seven letter word. Like the best films, there are no easy answers to be found here, and the problems of the characters cannot be solved in the 90 minutes this movie runs.
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