The Darjeeling Limited

"Picasso....Rembrant....Wes Andersen"

review of The Darjeeling Limited (2007)- Wes Andersen

Picasso used a paintbrush for his masterpieces, and Wes Andersen uses a camera and pencil. Next to Rushmore, I consider this to be Wes Andersen's 2nd best film. Andersen's films portray a meaning in a quiet, distinct, and subtle manner which no other writer or director has achieved. Their style and grace have a warming familiarity that can be seen throughout The Darjeeling Limited.

The Darjeeling Limited is a visually stunning tale of three brothers (Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and Adrian Brody) who search for meaning in their lives by embarking on a spiritual journey to India. We've all seen films involving spiritual journeys before, in which most of them fail to live up to our expectations. TDL is the latter. Brilliantly filmed on location in India, the film is pure gold from start to finish. It makes India look like a welcome place for those in search of deeper meaning.

The great thing about Andersen's films is that he can take a set of actors, that may not be especially great or entertaining, and turn them into intriguing characters who always leave you wanting to know more about. The Darjeeling Limited is no exception. The three brothers, who haven't seen each other in over a year, have excellent chemistry that shows what being family is all about. The characters show that no matter what distance or amount of time is set in between family members, they can always come back to each other and pick up right where they left off. This also includes their mother, Patricia (Anjelica Huston).

When Francis, Peter, and Jack depart for India, we see the depression in them that is controlling their lives. By the end of the film, it is obvious that they received what they came for: personal enlightenment and inner meaning. They also rekindled their bond as brothers.

The best part of a film like this is the bonding and brotherhood. Rather than two person interaction which can be seen in most films of the kind, we see a trifecta of interaction which is flawlessly carried out in the film, but more specifically in certain scenes. Three of my favorite scenes are: 1) When Jack, Peter, and Francis climb atop the steep hill to perform the flower ritual and end of fighting over the reason why they came to India 2) When the brothers attempt the flower ritual again around the campfire 3) After the brothers are booted from The Darjeeling Limited by the hasty conductor, when they encounter the children who are struggling to make it across the river.To conclude, The Darjeeling Limited is utterly fantastic. It is a film that should be seen by Andersen and non-Andersen fans alike.