Anderson quirky!
Francis is head of Francis Whitman Industries, and he travels with more luggage than all the rest of the people on the train put together. He has an assistant named Brendan (Wally Wolodarsky) whose primary task is to draft and print out a daily schedule for the brothers and give each of them a laminated copy. Brendan is off in another section of the train with computers, printers, and laminators, with all these unnecessary accoutrements suggesting how emotionally encumbered all three brothers are, and how much they're in need of a purifying experience. All of them carry more luggage than they need and drag more baggage than most, but what ironically stands most obstinately in the way of any transfiguring experience is Francis himself, who's almost as controlling as they remember their mother being. Peter, meanwhile, is going to be a father within a few weeks, and as shocking as it seems that he hasn't told his brothers before now, it turns out that he left his wife without telling her he was going to India. Before she told him she was pregnant he was thinking of ditching her, and so Francis' scheme couldn't come along at a better time. Same for Jack, a writer whose recent breakup with his girlfriend (Natalie Portman) gets confused with his fiction.
This DVD contains the prologue to "The Darjeeling Limited," a very short film called "Hotel Chevalier" which depicts Jack and his girlfriend in a passionate hotel encounter (yes, we see Portman's backside). A connection doesn't seem apparent until the very end of the film, but by then we've meandered so far across India and the low-key landscape of these brothers' memories that it doesn't really matter. When everything else seems so disconnected, why would it?
"The Darjeeling Limited" is an entertaining film, and a thoughtful one, if you pick up on some of the lines that point you in that direction. But at some point you have to wonder how many times Anderson is going to explore essentially the same material in a different setting.
Video:
"The Darjeeling Limited" (rated R for language) is presented in 2.40:1 widescreen. As I said, the whole film has an orange-yellow cast to it, which, combined with the hairstyles and Indian music, really evokes the late Sixties and early Seventies. There's a noticeable graininess throughout, and some of the brighter colors make for some indistinct edges. But it's not a bad transfer by any means, because you suspect that more of this is a directorial decision rather than a technical failing.
Audio:
The featured audio is an English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, which channels some of the music and sounds through the effects speakers and comes most alive during scenes involving a lot of extras and street noise. There's a decent tonal quality, with adequate bass and a treble that's more muted than shrill. Subtitles are in English, Spanish, and French.
Extras:
Some of our readers have already noted that Criterion has released other Anderson films and seems a good bet to do the same with this one. The scant amount of extras here only reinforces that kind of speculation. So does the fact that there's no simultaneous release of a Blu-ray. The only extra, other than that "Hotel Chevalier" prologue, is a very brief behind-the-scenes documentary that's narrated mostly by the production designer. We see Anderson on the set, and watch some of the filming, but by-and-large you get the feeling that they're holding out. And so will many fans, if they think an extras-rich edition is still to come.
Bottom Line:
I'm not as enamored of this film as many of the critics, thinking it more on a par with "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" than it is "The Royal Tenenbaums." But I enjoyed "The Darjeeling Limited," partly because of the scenery, partly because of the journey, and partly because the three stars were able to run--make that amble--with the premise enough to hold my attention during moments of relative inaction. And hey, it's Anderson quirky!
This DVD contains the prologue to "The Darjeeling Limited," a very short film called "Hotel Chevalier" which depicts Jack and his girlfriend in a passionate hotel encounter (yes, we see Portman's backside). A connection doesn't seem apparent until the very end of the film, but by then we've meandered so far across India and the low-key landscape of these brothers' memories that it doesn't really matter. When everything else seems so disconnected, why would it?
"The Darjeeling Limited" is an entertaining film, and a thoughtful one, if you pick up on some of the lines that point you in that direction. But at some point you have to wonder how many times Anderson is going to explore essentially the same material in a different setting.
Video:
"The Darjeeling Limited" (rated R for language) is presented in 2.40:1 widescreen. As I said, the whole film has an orange-yellow cast to it, which, combined with the hairstyles and Indian music, really evokes the late Sixties and early Seventies. There's a noticeable graininess throughout, and some of the brighter colors make for some indistinct edges. But it's not a bad transfer by any means, because you suspect that more of this is a directorial decision rather than a technical failing.
Audio:
The featured audio is an English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, which channels some of the music and sounds through the effects speakers and comes most alive during scenes involving a lot of extras and street noise. There's a decent tonal quality, with adequate bass and a treble that's more muted than shrill. Subtitles are in English, Spanish, and French.
Extras:
Some of our readers have already noted that Criterion has released other Anderson films and seems a good bet to do the same with this one. The scant amount of extras here only reinforces that kind of speculation. So does the fact that there's no simultaneous release of a Blu-ray. The only extra, other than that "Hotel Chevalier" prologue, is a very brief behind-the-scenes documentary that's narrated mostly by the production designer. We see Anderson on the set, and watch some of the filming, but by-and-large you get the feeling that they're holding out. And so will many fans, if they think an extras-rich edition is still to come.
Bottom Line:
I'm not as enamored of this film as many of the critics, thinking it more on a par with "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" than it is "The Royal Tenenbaums." But I enjoyed "The Darjeeling Limited," partly because of the scenery, partly because of the journey, and partly because the three stars were able to run--make that amble--with the premise enough to hold my attention during moments of relative inaction. And hey, it's Anderson quirky!
Average user rating (1-5):
Not yet rated.
Not yet rated.