The Darjeeling Limited faced something of an uphill battle from the start in terms of getting a lot of popular attention. It’s not the type of film that’s designed or intended to be a blockbuster, but rather a deeper, less flashy comedy that plays more off of oddities, idiosyncrasies , quirks and oddities that dwell within all of us that Wes Anderson seems to have a special talent for touching on.
Added to the drama of the film’s release was the Owen Wilson’s incident. I recently wrote a post asking if people were ready to see Owen Wilson on screen again without being distracted or tainted if you will by the unfortunate situation surrounding Wilson. That was now… months later… at the time it was nothing short of awkward, and even though Anderson’s films don’t generally score massive box office returns, The Darjeeling Limited only managed to make under $12 million. And that’s a shame, because the movie, while certainly not Anderson’s best, is something pretty special, and is coming on DVD this coming Tuesday the 26th.
“Three American brothers who have not spoken to each other in a year set off on a train voyage across India with a plan to find themselves and bond with each other — to become brothers again like they used to be. Their “spiritual quest”, however, veers rapidly off-course (due to events involving over-the-counter pain killers, Indian cough syrup, and pepper spray), and they eventually find themselves stranded alone in the middle of the desert with eleven suitcases, a printer, and a laminating machine. At this moment, a new, unplanned journey suddenly begins.”
Jason Schwartzman and Adrien Brody were both extremely good in the film, the humor was wonderful and the awkward yet determined chemistry between the 3 leads felt so authentic that it drew me in and got me emotionally invested in the film. The investment (in a film like this) is absolutely essential. Without it, the movie would feel drawn out, and rather boring… but when you do buy into the characters in a film like this, you feel like you’re taking the trip along with them, eager and interested in seeing where the journey will take you, and that was my experience watching The Darjeeling Limited.
If you haven’t seen the film yet (or even if you have) this is one you should definitely check out this Tuesday.
