The Darjeeling Limited (Anderson, 2007)

[ledfloyd]

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f331/ledfloyd18/image.jpg?t=1204167302

As someone who until last night had yet to be anything but severely annoyed by a Wes Anderson film I approached The Darjeeling Limited more out of a sense of duty than any real desire to see the film. Maybe to say he's only annoyed me in the past is a tad harsh. Certainly there were some aspects of the Royal Tenenbaums that I admired, despite getting no enjoyment from it. I've always noted his strengths, even though I found his films self-indulgent and toppled by their weaknesses.

The Darjeeling Limited breaks free from all his constraints. While from Bottle Rocket to The Life Aquatic his films became increasingly victim to his style, felt claustrophobic and choked by his 'quirk', Darjeeling really opens up. His style is weft organically into the story and characters, rather than they being imprisoned by it. There are still moments where I rolled my eyes, however they were far fewer than I'm accustomed to when dealing with Wes, and the emotional involvement was strong enough to make them seem insignificant.

Coming after four films where his talent didn't so much develop as back itself into a corner, and the insufferable Hotel Chevalier, it's rewarding to see him develop his strong points, eschew his weak points, and add a few more tools to his toolbox. The Darjeeling Limited is the first sign of growth in his career in nearly 10 years and easily his best film.

***1/2

[DavidSeven]

Old thoughts from the old forum:

Wes Anderson has lost his sense of structure. In The Darjeeling Limited, we wait at least 45 minutes for the story to progress yet very little is established before then. What is driving the brothers' desire to reconnect? Why were they driven apart in the first place? The answers could probably be hypothesized, but Anderson never makes us feel this sense of purpose. He never really gives us a reason to care. The story is too thin to carry its lofty thematic goals, and it results in a project that feels more like a minor exercise for the director than a complete work.

The film does show more compassion than the emotionally vacant Life Aquatic. As a result, Darjeeling is a step up from his previous effort. However, Anderson is still repeating himself. We're getting the same slow-mo tracking shots set to i-Tunes track #1 and the same character montages set to i-Tunes track #2. While Anderson allows more room for expressive acting to drive the drama, it's clear that he's still relying on detatched reactions to quirky situations to drive his comedy. More generally, he's still telling the same stories about the same repressed individuals with the same mommy/daddy issues. After five efforts, it's becoming clear to me that Anderson will forever be linked to the word "Limited," and it will have nothing to do with this film's title.

The good thing about going in circles is that your strengths will typically remain your strengths from project to project. Anderson hasn't lost his touch for charm nor his eye for aesthetically immaculate productions. There are scenes where the director's considerable talents come to the forefront. The most notable of such scenes is the hilariously executed brotherly tiff that gets a little out of hand and the river rescue that doesn't go exactly as planned. As successful as these scenes are, we're still reminded of things Anderson has already done: a comedic quarrel/rundown between Chas/Eli of the Tenenbaum clan and another aquatic tragedy in The Life Aquatic.

Should Anderson's stunted growth as an auteur stop us from appreciating Darjeeling as a stand alone piece? Absolutely not. The film is a minor effort because of a sloppily structured narrative that never draws us into its incredibly thin premise. However, those that believe in the auteur theory have to consider this to be yet another moment of stagnation for the director. Because of his prior success, we have to consider a broader question when examining his latest work. Will Anderson's inability to progress prevent him joining the ranks of the best American auteurs of his time? Probably.

[**1/2]

[Watashi]

It's probably my second favorite after Life Aquatic.

[Melville]

While from Bottle Rocket to The Life Aquatic his films became increasingly victim to his style, felt claustrophobic and choked by his 'quirk', Darjeeling really opens up.
I liked his earlier movies, but I agree with this. It was nice to see looser framing and a less rigid narrative.


Wes Anderson has lost his sense of structure. In The Darjeeling Limited, we wait at least 45 minutes for the story to progress yet very little is established before then. What is driving the brothers' desire to reconnect? Why were they driven apart in the first place? The answers could probably be hypothesized, but Anderson never makes us feel this sense of purpose. He never really gives us a reason to care. The story is too thin to carry its lofty thematic goals, and it results in a project that feels more like a minor exercise for the director than a complete work.
Hmm... the structure seemed very organic to me, slowly revealing its characters through their interactions, all building to the revelatory flashback. I agree that the thematic goals might have been a bit out of reach, and the ending was awfully sappy, but otherwise everything worked for me.


It's probably my second favorite after Life Aquatic.
I'd rate them thusly:
Bottle Rocket - 7.5
Rushmore - 10
The Royal Tenenbaums - 9.5
The Life Aquatic - 5
The Darjeeling Limited - 8.5

[trotchky]

Matt Zoller Seitz has kind of made me want to revisit it. In particular the luggage-tossing climax seems to hold more meaning than I previously thought (which is to say, none).

[Rowland]

In particular the luggage-tossing climax seems to hold more meaning than I previously thought (which is to say, none).You thought the luggage scene held no meaning? I didn't care for it either, but for the opposite reason, in that it's such a blatantly literal metaphor, it's kinda laughable. Seitz does have an interesting interpretation of the movie, believing that everyone is misinterpreting it and Anderson's real goal was to expose the brothers as the shallow assholes that they are, the ending included. I'm not convinced, but I'll keep that in mind should I ever see it again.

[trotchky]

You thought the luggage scene held no meaning? I didn't care for it either, but for the opposite reason, in that it's such a blatantly literal metaphor, it's kinda laughable.

Well, yeah. I guess what I meant was no subtext.

[Spinal]

This was pretty good, but lordy, those metaphors were heavy-handed. Going off the rails. Discarding the baggage. "I still have some healing to do." Enough! The experience with the boys on the raft makes the film and I did enjoy the Indian hostess on board the train. Mostly the film works, but I'd consider it a lesser effort from Wes.

[Sven]

For the life of me, I'm having the damnedest time locating MZS's thoughts on Darjeeling. Anyone got a link? :looking at Rowls:

[Rowland]

This was pretty good, but lordy, those metaphors were heavy-handed. Going off the rails. Discarding the baggage. "I still have some healing to do." Enough! The experience with the boys on the raft makes the film and I did enjoy the Indian hostess on board the train. Mostly the film works, but I'd consider it a lesser effort from Wes.I'm in the same ballpark as you, though I felt that as the metaphors became more heavy-handed as it went along, the movie developed into enough of a disappointment to justify a **½ rating. The first act on the train was easily my favorite, before it became so oppressively heavy-handed.

[Spinal]

I'm in the same ballpark as you, though I felt that as the metaphors became more heavy-handed as it went along, the movie developed into enough of a disappointment to justify a **½ rating. The first act on the train was easily my favorite, before it became so oppressively heavy-handed.

I was reminded of Little Miss Sunshine as they were getting on the train. I didn't take that to be a good thing.

[Velocipedist]

My review/comparative with previous Wes movies: Stronger storytelling, weaker story.

I do love trains and the design is marvelous, so it's an instant plus, though. I'd give it a 7? I don't know, I'm not sure yet.

[Rowland]

I was reminded of Little Miss Sunshine as they were getting on the train. I didn't take that to be a good thing.Are you talking about the ending when they are "leaving their baggage behind" to catch the train? If you're talking about the first act, I just felt that it worked the best as a charmingly neurotic comedy.

[Spinal]

Are you talking about the ending when they are "leaving their baggage behind" to catch the train? If you're talking about the first act, I just felt that it worked the best as a charmingly neurotic comedy.

The first one.

[Bosco B Thug]

The first act on the train was easily my favorite, before it became so oppressively heavy-handed. I agree, I remember feeling substantially impressed with Anderson during the first few scenes of the brothers on the train and with whatever modulation his directing style undertook in order to establish his characters in a more subdued and straight-forward but no less detailed and heavily morose way.

[dreamdead]

Yeah, this one doesn't ever quite work on any transcendent level, largely because, as has already been detailed, the metaphors are too literal and didactic. The healing schtick that's become Anderson's modus operandi of late is so oppressively overbearing that only Schwartzman's general prickness and Brody's acting carry it through.

And the slapstick and narcissistic dialogue ("Thanks for using me") works better in the film than the dealings with trauma. The flashback during the funeral feels too sketched. The rescue in the river works as a "moment," but the end result with their mother fails to progress on any real level. As Davidseven noted, it just doesn't cohere as a story, but instead dissolves into trite episodes where we're never sure if we're meant to critique or empathize with these characters. To me, only Rohmer successfully straddles that fence of humanizing and critiquing his young leads. Regardless, it's exquisitely framed (perhaps too much), but most of the older humanity is gone...

[balmakboor]

I approached this with the same sense of duty and adored it. The only other WA I've really liked was Bottle Rocket (and that took me two viewings with quite a few years in between). I should revisit his others and see if I've come around to his methods.