THE DARJEELING LIMITED
Director: Wes Anderson Stars: Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman, Angelica Huston, Bill Murray, Barbet Schroeder, Amara Khan, Waris Ahluwalia, Natalie Portman
Reviewed by GREG KING
No one does quirky or droll quite like Wes Anderson (Rushmore, The Royal Tannenbaums, etc). No-one does dysfunctional family relationships and inherently unlikeable characters like Anderson either. But Anderson’s off-beat sense of humour is also something of an acquired taste, and ultimately, this melancholic and bittersweet comedy is mainly likely to appeal to fans of his earlier films.
The Darjeeling Limited follows three estranged brothers who embark on a cross-country journey through India by train. The insecure older brother Francis (Anderson regular Owen Wilson) is recovering from a recent motorcycle accident and still proudly bears the scars and bandages. (Wilson’s recent real life personal dramas add an unexpected poignancy to his role here.) Peter (Adrien Brody) is about to become a father and is consumed by doubts over his marriage and what will become of his life. Youngest brother Jack (Jason Schwartzman) is a writer who has recently suffered the break up of a long-term relationship. His fiction has always been a thinly disguised version of his relationship with his two brothers, and this brings a certain tension to the journey.
The three haven’t spoken to each other for years, but are reluctantly brought together following the death of their father. They set out to find their mother (Anjelica Huston), who has retreated to a monastic life in a convent somewhere in the remote mountainous region. Their trip is alternately fraught with moments of insight and moments of slapstick comedy. But ultimately their journey proves to be something of a spiritual adventure and cathartic experience for the three brothers, and by the end they have, literally and metaphorically, cast off their excess baggage.
The script has been written by Anderson, Schwartzman and his cousin Roman Coppola, although some of the dialogue has a spontaneous feel, as though they were making it up as they go along. There is some stunning cinematography of Indian locations, which adds to the film’s rich visual style and unexpected pleasures. The deadpan performances from the three leads perfectly complement Anderson’s droll style. And Anderson aficionados will undoubtedly break into a knowing chuckle at the mere sight of regular Bill Murray, despite his enigmatic and brief role.
The Darjeeling Limited is also accompanied by a thirteen minute short film, Hotel Chevalier, which serves as something of a prologue as it explores Schwartzman’s character and his relationship with a former girlfriend (Natalie Portman).
**1/2
Reviewed by PETER MALONE
Very limited.
The film was co-written and directed by Wes Anderson who has become something of a cult figure in American cinema for off-beat comedy: Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. This film is not as good as these previous films although many audiences have found it admirable and entertaining. However, it is difficult to know whether the name Wes Anderson is an explanation or an excuse.
The film will be enjoyed by those who like slacker comedies for the sake of slacker comedy. Those who do not enjoy slacker comedy for its own sake - without some sense of irony, some sense of purpose, even some form of sentiment, will find the film somewhat stupid and, sometimes, distasteful.
The title indicates India and it shows three brothers, three nongs, meeting in India go on what they think is a life changing quest. However, it is not so much a spiritual journey or a life-saving quest, but rather a shallow excursion into some kind of self-understanding which may, or may not, last. For many Indian audiences, the exploitation of their land, people, religious rituals and customs may also appear as very exploitative and patronising on the part of Americans, who feel that they can come into a land, take over, and achieve their spiritual quest.
Perhaps that is taking the film too seriously. It is meant to be light-hearted. Owen Wilson portrays a slacker, characteristically, but is also uncharacteristically a control freak. Jason Schwartzman (who wrote the screenplay with his cousin Roman Coppola and Wes Anderson) is a narcissistic, lascivious brother. Adrien Brody is the middle brother - who does share some signs of potential normality and some kind of integrity but the screenplay does not allow him to follow this through.
The film has the characters getting on and off a train - put off with just fine reasons at times. However, one of the times they are off the train leads them to an act of nobility, trying to rescue some boys in a river and a waterfall. When one of the boys dies, the community accepts them and invites them to the funeral, sees them off as heroes. They are really on a journey to meet their mother who has withdrawn from the family in Boston and become associated with nuns in the Himalayas. When they finally reach her, we find that she is played, quite well, by Angelica Houston.
Bill Murray has a cameo role as a man who misses the initial train. There are some Indian performers - who are cast in some caricature, stereotypic and slightly demeaning roles.
The film is preceded with a Part One, a 13 minute short film, Hotel Chevalier, where the Jason Schwartzman character has been in seclusion in this Paris hotel for some time, meets up with his girlfriend, played by Natalie Portman (who appears in a glimpse in The Darjeeling Limited but this story is referred to). The film then becomes Part Two. However, during the funeral of the little boy, there is a flashback to the funeral of the three brothers’ father (and some farcical aspects concerning his car, the mother not being there, their being late for the funeral).
In terms of editing, this slows up the film and the boy’s funeral seems contrived just to have this flashback. It might have been a good idea to excise this from the feature film and have it as a second short, it becoming Part Two and the film itself becoming Part Three. It is quite effective, as it is at present in having the short at the opening of the film and then going into the film.
Wes Anderson’s comedy is certainly an acquired taste.