Cho CHo CHOOOO!

The Darjeeling Limited - 4.25/5 stars

Dir: Wes Anderson (prev work Royal Tenaunbaums, Rushmore)

Wes Anderson coming back to form after his slight slump in his prev film Life Aquatic with a funnier, quirkier and indianer story.

Three American brothers who have not spoken to each other in a year set off on a train voyage (the train is call Darkeeling Ltd thus the title) across India with a plan to find themselves and bond with each other -- to become brothers again like they used to be. Their "spiritual quest", however, veers rapidly off-course (due to events involving over-the-counter pain killers, Indian cough syrup, and pepper spray), and they eventually find themselves stranded alone in the middle of the desert with eleven suitcases, a printer, and a laminating machine. At this moment, a new, unplanned journey suddenly begins.

Wes is one of my favourite actor as i absolutely love his style of work which is easily the most distintive warm colourful setting, simple camera tracking movement, quick panning, slow motion, almost the same cast (Owen Wilson, Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman, Anjelica Huston), and 60s soundtrack. But critics normally panned him for never breaking out of the box and playing with the same storyline of a trouble family relationship.

The magical and beauty of this film is the Indian setting background the whole art direction of this movie. The train, which obviously is a set provide the charm of the heart of the movie. The music and the whole backdrop make you feel really fun and relax watching this movie throughout. The other successful part is the casting of the 3 brothers, (Adrien Brody, Owen Wilson and Jason Schwartman), although playing really 3 different characters, their chemistry can be seen on-screen sabotaging, distrusting and trying to escape from one another. You really feel for the sentiment affection of this worse then stranger brothers. Especially memorable is the line by Jack, "I wonder if the three of us would've been friends in real life. Not as brothers, but as people ".

Also recommended viewing before watching this amazing film is Hotel Chevalier, a 13 minute short film directed by Anderson and starring Jason Schwartzman, available for free download online. In the film, Schwartzman plays the same character that he plays in The Darjeeling Limited. Also starring is Natalie Portman as Jack's ex-girlfriend, who makes a brief cameo in the feature film as well. The short film helps establish Schwartzman's character, and provides clues on certain details of The Darjeeling Limited.