Lifestyle

REVIEW: THE DARJEELING LIMITED

WES ANDERSON’S LATEST “NOT EVERYONE’S CUP OF TEA”

About as far away from Transformers as it is possible to get, those unprepared for Wes Anderson’s emphasis on style over content will leave this nothing less than perplexed.

“What the fuck is going on” Natalie Portman asks midway through the opening short film. A pertinent question. The deadpan delivery of Portman and Jason Schwartzman skirts close to the edge of cliché (estranged lovers meet in a Parisian hotel) without actually going near it. Sounds odd but it works.
The shlurpy, sucking kissing noises of the fairly brief sex scene are perhaps the only missed beat throughout. More toe curling than anything, like catching a glimpse of someone with a cold sore eating a pasty.

At about 100 minutes the main feature is a nice length for its gentle cadence. The laid-back pace and absence of perceptible climax lends itself perfectly to the slow-burning tension, affection and wit between three brothers reunited on a “spiritual journey” which turns out to be an excursion to their estranged mother.

As Francis, the quasi-control freak with a love for itineraries, Owen Wilson almost runs away with his scenes from his first appearance, head bandaged. Inducing laughter in an audience with your face alone is a genuine talent. He has an excellent foil in the long-faced Adrien Brody, while Schwartzman is away with himself chasing the achingly beautiful Indian stewardess Rita.

To truly appreciate what is being attempted in Darjeeling Limited you would probably have to have seen one or several of Wes Anderson’s other pieces, Broken Flowers, Royal Tenenbaums, Life Aquatic etc. The cinematography is heavily reminiscent of any or all or these, though the inclusion of the Bollywood-esque is a very nice touch. The colour pallet is immediately identifiable as Indian in origin, and is rarely less than beguiling in its rejection of the western cinematographic norm.

Rating: 7.7/10

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