The Darjeeling Limited

When I first heard about Wes Anderson's The Darjeeling Limited I was super excited and saw it on opening weekend, and I'm pleased to say I was NOT disapointed. Anderson is the brilliance behind Rushmore, The Life Aquatic and The Royal Tenenbaums and The Darjeeling Limited follows in their footsteps of quirkiness and comedy. It stars Adrien Brody, Owen Wilson, and Jason Schwartzman with cameos by Natalie Portman and Bill Murray. It also just came out on DVD so GO RENT IT asap.

Basically, without giving anything away, it's about three brothers (Brody, Wilson, and Schwartzman) who travel across India on a train (which is called the Darjeeling Limited, how cute is that?). The cast is amazing, and even if you don't like Owen Wilson (it seems like every woman over 25+ that I've told about this film has said "ugh" to Wilson, so I wanted to get that out there...) you'll love how the three characters interact in all of their banter, dysfunctionalism (is that a word?) and charisma. Plus, Adrien Brody just may be the sexiest man alive (Clark Gable is the sexiest man dead, while Marlon Brando is just the sexiest man past, present and future, period.) and he's shirtless through a lot of the film, so even if it had been awful, it sure wouldn't have been awful. It wasn't awful though, especially due to Brody because he's so heartwrenching and when you watch it you'll see what I mean.

What I loved about the film is that it takes such a rich setting and combines it with rich, enjoyable dialogue and beautiful cinematography. Although Juno was dubbed this year's Little Miss Sunshine, The Darjeeling Limited may have been a better pick simply because it was put together so well (I still don't understand how it failed to gain Oscar buzz). Plus, of course, it's insanely adorable and funny - and yes, it does mix in some dark bits. It's so vibrant and real and so easy to fall in love with because despite their inability to do anything right, you'll love the three brothers and the way they interact (or fail to) and how they grow.

The film was preceeded by the short film "Hotel Chevalier" starring Schwartzman and Portman, which helps understand the angstiness of Schwartzman's character. I'm assuming this short film is on the DVD as well, so I suggest watching it before the feature if you can.

This is probably Anderson's best work to date (even though the Royal Tenenbaums was better recieved) and in my opinion, one of the best films of the year. My heart swelled as literally as possible when I was in the theatre and I was actually a bit sully when it was over.

If you need more convincing (pfffft...), here's the trailer (which actually makes it seem less enticing and charismatic than it is):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aO1bYukdvLI