There seem to be two camps on Wes Anderson: Those who think Wes Anderson represents the paragon of indie culture and those that think Wes Anderson represents the premier example of elitist, non-substantial filmmaking. Both camps, however, seem unhappy with Anderson's newest film, The Darjeeling Limited. The latter because it exists and the former because of Anderson's uneasy and perhaps over-pronounced union with Apple and the "intrusion" of more mainstream Hollywood players such as Natalie Portman and Adrien Brody.
Regardless of which camp you fit into, you will be happy to know The Darjeeling Limited can satisfy you if you are willing to let it. The film still adheres strongly to the Anderson aesthetic and deals with familiar themes, but it also ventures into newer emotional and thematic territory to feel fresher.
The Darjeeling Limited focuses on three brothers traveling through India by train on an attempt to rediscover themselves after the sudden and devastating death of their father. The film begins with a segment that is almost a second introductory short film (the first being the prelude Hotel Chevalier available on iTunes) featuring Bill Murray desperately trying to catch a train. As it becomes obvious that he is not going to make it, the film goes into its first trademark slow-motion shot, and Adrien Brody suddenly bursts onto screen behind Murray to catch the train, watching as Murray is left behind. This short segment serves as a sort of multiple metaphor. The most accessible meaning at the time is self-reflexive: Anderson playing on expectations. One would expect that Murray, an Anderson actor and perhaps character regular, would be featured prominently in this new Anderson film, but instead, he is surpassed and then physically left behind by the new Brody. Here, Anderson is very much saying goodbye to old tropes and is attempting, like the brothers, to move on but with mixed results.
The intended point of this trans-subcontinental train ride is to help the three brothers deal with the death of their father, yet their so-called spiritual journey seems only to be another distraction from his death and their grief. Their first spiritual pit-stop begins perhaps with genuine intentions but then turns into a fight between the brothers and then devolves into a mass shopping spree. Despite their best attempts to move past their father's death by abandoning themselves to distraction, all three brothers seem to be obsessed with death. Owen Wilson's character Francis intentionally runs his motorcycle into the side of a mountain; Brody's character Peter purchases the most poisonous snake in India as a pet; and Jason Schwartzman's Jack is trapped writing "fictional" short stories centered around a father's death.
In their most bitter state, one of the brothers spots three Indian children attempting to cross a river and says "Look at these assholes." Here is mirror image of the three brothers -- three Indian boys trying as hard as they can to cross a river but unable to move forward because of the current flowing against them. In a way, the three brothers are watching themselves, and the classification of themselves as "assholes" is readily apparent. The parallel is made more evident as the rope they're holding suddenly snaps and each brother claims a child to save from the dangerous current. This sudden reemergence of mortality and its consequences moves the brothers toward the path of true spiritual meaning.
As the three brothers decide to continue their journey together, they run to catch a final train. Jack cries out, "Dad's bags aren't going to make it!" and in what is probably the most cathartic shot of Anderson's career, the three brothers toss away their father's baggage in the final slow-motion shot and catch the train. Similarly, if viewers can leave behind their preconceived baggage of what a Wes Anderson film is or should be, they will find The Darjeeling Limited may not be a spiritual journey, but it is definitely an enjoyable one.
Read More
The best albums of 2014
By Noah Zeidman | December 4, 2014Across genres, it has been a pretty great year in music.
Top 10 movies of 2014
December 4, 2014This has been an excellent year for film, offering everything from gripping blockbusters to innovative personal films.
Iggy Azalea is “Reclassified”
December 4, 2014It has become common practice among music artists to repackage their albums in an effort to simultaneously boost single sales and dish out new content by slightly renaming the album or slapping “Deluxe” onto the title.
