The Darjeeling Limited (2007)

And the year's Stinko goes to:

The experience began like staring at a wall with a mild but relentless toothache and steadily worsened. About halfway through I got up and looked for my revolver. The only way to explain this film is that Wes Anderson, who produced, directed and co-wrote the film, is six years old and not a film prodigy. Although that is rather unkind to six-year olds, who could spin a better story with crayons. In an attempt to mimic the hackneyed plot of pilgrims on a journey, Andersen adds no drama, no adventure, no jokes, and no point. Rumors persist that the film was made as a practical joke on the financial underwriters -- cruel humor indeed.

It the single worst movie I've seen since 1989 when Hollywood featured Kirk ("Growing Pains") Cameron in it's adventure-thrill-filled homage to the nail-bitingly exciting world of collegiate debating -- released under the ironically non-ironical title "Listen to Me," which gives you some idea of the kind of razor-sharp wit employed in that film.
October 1, 2008

Profound, NOT!

Two and a half stars. Half a star for cinematography and location...so watch if you like travelogue films. Other than that, don't bother. The makers of this film could have made a '60's style spiritual/social commentary, but opted to drop the ball, so to speak, and smugly leave us hanging without explanation. It IS self explanatory, but the film makers leave too much to our imagination to do. In this film, three self centered weenies go in search of--at first, or so the oldest brother of the three tells them--a spiritual quest. Secretly, he's got them together to search for their mother who's "dropped out" (or IN, from her persective). I sat for 50 minutes enduring their sad seeker baloney--and they're obviously vapid, rich jerks, plonked down in one of the poorer countries of the world (India)--traveling along aboard the train called the Darjeeling Limited. Adrien Brody does have a moment to shine, and it's when the TRUE spiritual moment of the film happens (SPOILER ALERT) as he and his brothers save two of three boys who've fallen off their raft into a rapid river. Now, a point can be made here, IF you believe in this sort of thing; they were in the right place at the right time--and THAT is what they should have acknowledged. Yet, they go back to being vapid, spoiled drifters. Still, even since the film makers didn't acknowledge that, other than visually, it still SAYS SOMETHING. BUT, I think they were too involved in making something on the order of "Easy Rider" (with doofuses) and shot the message in the foot by wasting our time with the rest of it. Their "apology" (IMHO) was in a scene near the end--a fellini moment--where the camera pans through each compartment of the train, including Bill Murray and the Tiger, as if to say;
"we're all on a journey through life, it may seem futile, but we're ALL together while doing it". In making this 1960's style statement, I might admire, if it weren't for the fact that the 1960's were NO FUN. Assasinations, war, & civil unrest made it all a turnmoil. A few good movies commented on this. This movie fails to hit the bulls eye in trying to achieve that, as it leaves the majority of the mass audience out of a punch line to the joke; despite our best efforts, we only succeed while we're busy making other plans, and maybe don't even notice we have succeeded. these film makers haven't. September 25, 2008

Not for everyone

This is one of those movies you either love or you hate. I like it, but I am not suprised that it has drawn some very negative reviews. It's not for everyone. September 14, 2008

And now for something completely different...

I've seen one too many "let's look at India but not the REAL India" movies lately. Fortunately, this isn't one of them. Instead, it's a movie where India is a backdrop to be ignored, aside from one totally unnecessary subplot about sex that could not happen.

Rather, this is an observant and very watchable film about three brothers who set out on a "spiritual journey" in which they never get out of themselves long enough to notice anything else. Good chemistry, great acting, sharp writing, and a fine movie.
September 11, 2008

How do movies like this get green lit?

"The Darjeeling Limited" written and directed by Wes Anderson.

Three brothers, Francis (Owen Wilson), Peter (Adrien Brody) and Jack (Jason Schwartzman) have been convinced to come together on what is supposed to be a spiritual journey across India. All 3 brothers are still dealing with the loss of their father and the fact that their mother didn't come to the funeral and has disappeared without informing anyone as to where she has gone. Each is bringing his own set of baggage be it emotional, physical or a combination of the 2 and the underlying family tension compounds an already uncomfortable situation. What Francis hasn't told his brothers is that the main point of the trip is to see their mother whom he has located...

This movie is so terrible that I am left almost speechless. I am still trying to figure out how someone read this script and gave it a green light. The only and I mean only redeeming feature of this movie is the short film at the beginning "Hotel Chevalier" and the assets that Natalie Portman brings to it.

The Good: There are very few positives where this movie is concerned. All of the actors gave good performances but the characters they were portraying weren't interesting in anyway. The look of the movie overall was good but again the story that was unfolding within the interesting looking picture was not interesting or entertaining in anyway.

The Bad: The story/plot is terrible and from the start I was asking myself "why am I watching this" coupled with "why do I care" and the answers were simple. The DVD was already there and I didn't care. The characters were all ludicrous and that combined with a terrible story leaves nothing redeeming.

Overall: This might be worth a rental just to see Natalie Portman in the short "Hotel Chevalier" but there isn't anything else worth watching. Avoid "The Darjeeling Limited" at all cost.
September 1, 2008

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