If you've given me an E and I haven't thanked you, I apologise - trying to catch up. Really apprecia...
If you've given me an E and I haven't thanked you, I apologise - trying to catch up. Really appreciate all ratings.
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Three brothers, Francis, Peter and Jack, go on a trip to India together after having not spoken for some considerable time. Francis, who arranges the trip, hopes that this will bring them together - there is much bad feeling between them since the death of their father and their mother's decision to become a nun. Initially, Peter and Jack are very reluctant to commit to Francis' plans, angry at his bossiness. Then they get thrown off the train (The Darjeeling Limited of the title) because of suspected drug use, and end up wandering the Indian countryside. Then someone is involved in an accident; the brothers try to help. Will it bring them closer together? Or is the rift between them too wide to bridge?
I am always interested in films that portray other countries, and so was eager to watch this film. The fact that Owen Wilson plays the lead role was also an incentive; I don't consider him to be a particularly good actor, but I have a soft spot for him, probably because of his recent troubles. As Francis, he initially makes a strange impression. Having recently had a car accident, his head is bandaged up, which makes it hard to see his facial expressions. I'm not sure that this really made any difference though! Francis is the most annoying of the brothers; as the eldest, he is very bossy and a little bit patronising. I thought
Wilson was good enough in the role. It isn't one that I am going to remember him for though. He does bring a little bit of comedy into what is otherwise a fairly serious film, but probably not enough.
The strongest performance probably came from Adrien Brody. I'm not that familiar with him as an actor - King Kong is the only film I can remember seeing him in. However, as Peter, he seems to be the character with the most depth. He has left behind his wife, who is about to give birth. Seemingly uncaring, we find out during the course of the film that the baby means more to him than he is letting on. I thought it was a sensitive performance by Brody, not a particularly memorable one, but certainly more than adequate. Jason Schwartzman, who plays Jack, gives a good performance, one that also injects a bit of comedy into the film. He seems to be unable to keep his bits in his trousers and makes a play for the Indian train hostess. Again, it is not a memorable performance, but it is more than good enough for what is needed. Schwartzman also has a role in what is called Part 1 of The Darjeeling Limited - a short film that is on the disc before the main feature starts. I initially thought this was a joke - it is simply Jack in a hotel room when one of his lovers, played by Natalie Portman, arrives unexpectedly. I wasn't all that sure what the point of this was; thankfully, it was over in just a few minutes.
There were also a couple of brief performances by well-known actors worth a mention. Bill Murray appears right at the beginning of the main feature, trying to catch the train that the brothers are on. This is all we see of him, so quite what the point of him appearing at all is beyond me. Then Anjelica Huston appears as the boys' mother. I would have loved to have seen more of her, but the role is very brief. It is interesting to see the relationship she has with her sons though, and it does help to make sense of their behaviour.
The best thing about this film is that it is beautifully filmed. I really enjoyed the visual side of it, whether it is on board the train, which is a fascinating glimpse into Indian life, or when they are wandering around the countryside, when we get to see how the locals live. Of course, most of it is probably staged, but it still looks good, with lots of vivid colours. There is one point towards the end when we are shown snapshots of the lives of all the people involved in the film, filmed as if each of them is in a separate carriage on the train (even though a couple of them are back in the US). I thought this was very well done, and something for which director Wes Anderson should be commended.
On to the negatives. This is one of those films that, for me, didn't really have a great deal of meaning. It is all about the brothers going on a spiritual journey to find themselves. This is all a bit too neat and tidy for me. If only I had known before succumbing to clinical depression and a breakdown that all I had needed to do was go away and 'find' myself! Life just isn't that easy. I am perhaps being harsh, but I did feel that the whole concept was a bit patronising. It is also a little bit dull at times - much of the film is focussed on the brothers' relationship, but once you have established that Francis is the bossy one, Peter is the sensitive one and Jack is the promiscuous one, there isn't much of interest left to find out. I do like films that concentrate on the characters and their relationships; I just didn't think that the characters here were well-developed enough to fill out a whole film.
Apart from the short film that precedes the main feature, there is also a couple of special features. One is a documentary about the production side of the film. This is only likely to be of interest for people interested in the technical side of film-making, because it delves into how the set was put together, and how the actors worked around the set. Then there is a slew of trailers for other Fox Entertainment films, including Rescue Dawn (Christian Bale) and The Savages (Philip Seymour Hoffman).
This is an okay film, and is worth watching for the visual side of things. As a story, however, I didn't really get it. It was just not exciting enough for me, and, as mentioned, I found it all a little bit patronising and self-indulgent on the part of writers Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola. Of course, everyone will take something different away from it, so that isn't necesssarily a reason not to watch. On the whole though, I'm not sure I would recommend spending a lot of money for the DVD; it is probably worth waiting for it to be shown on television.
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Whilst I appreciate that the film was about the 3 brothers' relationships the inaccuracies about India would have annoyed me - only because I've been there myself quite a few times - had it been partially set in another country I would not have known about inaccuracies and felt differently about the film overall - there she speaks who hasn't even seen the film yet LOL!
koshkha 08.02.2009 18:28
You are so much kinder about this film than I would have been. I thought it was utter tosh and really really irritating and totally unreal. The scenes of India were just plain stupid and unrealistic and that ridiculous mini-film in the hotel before the main film had me repeatedly saying 'sorry' to my husband before the main feature even kicked in. I was desperately disappointed by the film - esp. as I'd just come back from Darjeeling and felt totally cheated by the name of the film which had NOTHING to do with the place at all........deep breath, calm down koshkha.
tumblewheel 08.02.2009 17:40
Disappointed that Bill Murray's role is only fleeting. I thought he was great in three previous Wes Anderson films.
Feb 6th, 2009
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