Three brothers, who’ve been out of contact for a year, reunite to go on a “spiritual journey," which turns into something deeper than any of them had anticipated. Their means of transportation across India is an exquisite yet cozy feeling train. It’s a train more majestic than any other train I’ve ever seen in movies. All types of people board this train and each of them have their own problems. The ending puts an emphasis on the train to show its full proficiency. This whole get together is made possible by Francis (Owen Wilson who is great but one can’t help but think of his recent attempted suicide) whose face is covered with bandages after trying to kill himself on his motorcycle. He’s sick of all the isolation surrounding him, so he calls up his ever-so-lovable brothers. Peter (Adrian Brody) is still trying to figure out if he loves his pregnant wife. Then there is little Jack (Jason Schwartzman) a man who still acts like a little kid, calling his girlfriend’s answering machine to make sure she’s not cheating. Francis hopes that different kinds of rituals and certain spiritual praying grounds will get them all back to the way they use to be. He is so dedicated to the process that he brings along a buddy with a computer, printer and a laminating machine on board to create laminated itineraries regarding the journey’s activities. But can he deal with Peter taking their father’s possessions or what happens once they begin to tell their secrets to one another?

These Whitman brothers have some serious problems. Each one of them is addicted to some kind of medication. Their father was hit and killed by a taxi and their mother left them to be a nun. The only logical thing to do is to leave the past behind. Francis puts it best when he says, “All I want is for us to be brothers again.” But what it takes to get these brothers to be brothers again is an extreme event.

Wes Anderson creates a hilarious brotherhood comedy that couldn’t be more spot on than it already is. The arguments between the three are about what brothers the world over argue about. Jealousy, materialism and women. Anderson gets this exactly right. Not to mention the harsh reality that he throws in the movie out of the clear blue. Mixing comedy and intense drama can be tough but Anderson makes it work here. Schwartzman and Wilson are veterans at working with Anderson and know how to handle certain situations, but it’s Brody who achieves possibly the film's best performance.

The Darjeeling Limited is hard to forget (the wonderful music only makes it harder) once you leave the cinema and the Whitman brother's incredible life-finding journey is something that has to be seen.

Film Rating: *** 1/2 out of ****

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Comments (2)

Anderson in decline?

I am not impressed by this latest project of Wes Anderson. After watching a number of his past films, including Bottle Rocket, Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums, there seems to be a decline in the quality of his work. Rushmore is a favorite of mine and Jason Schwartzman really did great, with the fantastic support given by Bill Murray of course.

In Darjeeling, Anderson employs Jason again and cast him to be one of the 3 brothers. Brody did great but I think the film drags and lost steam even before we get to know the characters. The locale, the people, even the language and the very nature of India seems to be just a background, a wallpaper for Anderson.

jedmed , December 06, 2007

Darjeeling

i agree about India being the wallpaper but i felt the characters were really "real" i thought Anderson captured that brother hood like no one else....but compared to Rushmore or Bottle Rocket Darjeeling can be in that category as time goes by...

dimichele305 , December 06, 2007

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