The Darjeeling Limited
Wes Anderson's films are like those of Coen brothers but without fangs. He is up there in quirkiness and creating unforgettable characters but while the Coens drive home their point with a thump (or an air gun, if you will), Anderson's films are a gentle nudge. They goad but do say with a feather while the Coens leave you bloody and reeling. Coens seem to obsess over the insertion of crime into everyday life and everyday characters and Anderson seems to be all about the insertion of quirkiness into everyday life and everyday characters.
"The Darjeeling Limited" is the story of 3 brothers from an average broken American family that must seek resolution via an exotic train trip in the old spiritual guard: India. Anderson generally plays by the rules of the sub-genre (yes, going to another country to seek resolve is at least a sub-genre) and shows us little tidbits of India, its people and its quirkiness that all fit his plot well. However, Anderson also breaks the rules a bit by making this mostly a film between the brothers and their inability to communicate or connect. The story mostly works as a device to get their characters out in the open and lets him (Anderson) play with them in their full effect. There are some astonishing gems like Adrien Brody's character says -- 'I couldn't save mine' -- after the brothers try to save, and the two others succeed, the lives of 3 drowning village boys; or the Owen Wilson character's strange presumed leadership of the outfit or Angelica Houston's role as the estranged mother who left her charmed life in mid-west (presumably) to become a nun in a sleepy Indian town.
The film features an extraordinary soundtrack including an unbelievably brilliant collection of title songs from various Satyajit Ray films (Charu's theme from Joi Baba Felunath being my favorite) and old Merchant-Ivory films that play throughout the film as background music. This among other brilliant songs (This Time Tomorrow and Powerman by the Kinks, an amazing French Song and so much more) helps complete a well-rounded package of neatly tied brilliance.
"The Darjeeling Limited" is the story of 3 brothers from an average broken American family that must seek resolution via an exotic train trip in the old spiritual guard: India. Anderson generally plays by the rules of the sub-genre (yes, going to another country to seek resolve is at least a sub-genre) and shows us little tidbits of India, its people and its quirkiness that all fit his plot well. However, Anderson also breaks the rules a bit by making this mostly a film between the brothers and their inability to communicate or connect. The story mostly works as a device to get their characters out in the open and lets him (Anderson) play with them in their full effect. There are some astonishing gems like Adrien Brody's character says -- 'I couldn't save mine' -- after the brothers try to save, and the two others succeed, the lives of 3 drowning village boys; or the Owen Wilson character's strange presumed leadership of the outfit or Angelica Houston's role as the estranged mother who left her charmed life in mid-west (presumably) to become a nun in a sleepy Indian town.
The film features an extraordinary soundtrack including an unbelievably brilliant collection of title songs from various Satyajit Ray films (Charu's theme from Joi Baba Felunath being my favorite) and old Merchant-Ivory films that play throughout the film as background music. This among other brilliant songs (This Time Tomorrow and Powerman by the Kinks, an amazing French Song and so much more) helps complete a well-rounded package of neatly tied brilliance.