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grrgoylSaturday morning on the way home from my shift at 5 a.m. I stopped at the store. As I paid for my groceries, the cashier asked if my day was starting or ending. Since the true answer, a little bit of both since I grab a 3-hour nap before returning to my day job, was more involved than she was looking for, I just smiled and said "Ending." Close by was a vaguely Eastern European-looking man who jumped in. "I always wonder the same thing too when I see people at this time of day. My day is also ending." I felt like I was part of some secret club: the in-between people. He walked me all the way out to the parking lot, expanding on the admittedly miniscule thread of what we had in common. Unnecessary, but sweet.
I think people look at me differently when I'm in scrubs, like I work with hospice patients or something. Once a Wendy's drive-thru cashier noticed the togs and smiled benevolently, murmuring, "God bless you." Again unnecessary (and a bit misplaced), but sweet.
And Sunday, my favorite day of the week basking in the relaxed afterglow after my 48-hour work weekend, Tery and I watched The Darjeeling Limited. She wasn't terribly impressed. I, on the other hand, was.
Before this, my favorite Wes Anderson film, hands down far and away was Rushmore. Which isn't to say Darjeeling has changed that, but it's certainly running a very tight second (Royal Tenenbaums third, Life Aquatic fourth, and lastly Bottle Rocket, for anyone who cares).
It's the story of three brothers who reunite a year after their father's death. Francis (Owen Wilson), has planned a spiritual journey through India for them to reconnect, though his hidden agenda is tracking down their absentee mother, now a nun in the Himalayas. His major flaw is the need to plan everything down to the last detail, as well as have full control over everyone else's experiences. Peter (Adrien Brody) is having domestic trouble, with a baby on the way. Jack (Jason Schwartzman) recently had his heart broken and just tries to stay out of the way of his two brothers' constant conflict.
At the beginning of the movie their relationships are laid out quickly. They are tense and fraught with petty altercations, much like my family. Peter and Jack confide in each other, only to later betray those confidences to Francis at the flimsiest excuse. The more tightly regimented Francis tries to keep things, the more rebellious the other brothers become, and the further from the purpose for their trip they stray.
It's only when they are booted from the train, stranded in a backwater Indian village off the beaten tourist track, throw Francis' laminated itinerary to the wind and come face to face with a very large curveball that they start to achieve the bond they were in search of.
At the climax of the movie, they run in Anderson's trademark slow-mo to catch another train. Realizing it won't be possible with their father's 10-piece matching luggage set they carry throughout the movie, they shed the baggage, physically and metaphysically, and leap aboard. The Darjeeling Limited thus transforms into the Kundalini Express in a conclusion that left me with an enormous smile on my face and tears in my eyes.
Tery just coughed harshly and got up to use the bathroom. "What was your favorite part?" I asked cleverly, following her. "There were so many I can't even choose" she answered even more cleverly. She's so full of shit. What matters is I know she is, and she knows I know she is, and we stay together anyway.
My only possible complaint was that Bill Murray was sadly under-utilized. He is to Wes what Johnny Depp is to Tim Burton, in my opinion.
I think I related to this more than Anderson's other movies thanks to the brothers' familiar picayune bickering and sniping. Sadly, I think it would take much more than a trip across a foreign country to repair our family.
Despite this, I absolutely loved it, and I don't think that's just the feel-good Sunday talking. Detractors call Wes a one-trick pony, but I can't get enough of his off-center cinematography, quirky quiet humor, dramatic slow-motion and obscure Rolling Stones soundtracks. An enthusiastic 4.5 out of 5.
I think people look at me differently when I'm in scrubs, like I work with hospice patients or something. Once a Wendy's drive-thru cashier noticed the togs and smiled benevolently, murmuring, "God bless you." Again unnecessary (and a bit misplaced), but sweet.
And Sunday, my favorite day of the week basking in the relaxed afterglow after my 48-hour work weekend, Tery and I watched The Darjeeling Limited. She wasn't terribly impressed. I, on the other hand, was.
Before this, my favorite Wes Anderson film, hands down far and away was Rushmore. Which isn't to say Darjeeling has changed that, but it's certainly running a very tight second (Royal Tenenbaums third, Life Aquatic fourth, and lastly Bottle Rocket, for anyone who cares).
It's the story of three brothers who reunite a year after their father's death. Francis (Owen Wilson), has planned a spiritual journey through India for them to reconnect, though his hidden agenda is tracking down their absentee mother, now a nun in the Himalayas. His major flaw is the need to plan everything down to the last detail, as well as have full control over everyone else's experiences. Peter (Adrien Brody) is having domestic trouble, with a baby on the way. Jack (Jason Schwartzman) recently had his heart broken and just tries to stay out of the way of his two brothers' constant conflict.
At the beginning of the movie their relationships are laid out quickly. They are tense and fraught with petty altercations, much like my family. Peter and Jack confide in each other, only to later betray those confidences to Francis at the flimsiest excuse. The more tightly regimented Francis tries to keep things, the more rebellious the other brothers become, and the further from the purpose for their trip they stray.
It's only when they are booted from the train, stranded in a backwater Indian village off the beaten tourist track, throw Francis' laminated itinerary to the wind and come face to face with a very large curveball that they start to achieve the bond they were in search of.
At the climax of the movie, they run in Anderson's trademark slow-mo to catch another train. Realizing it won't be possible with their father's 10-piece matching luggage set they carry throughout the movie, they shed the baggage, physically and metaphysically, and leap aboard. The Darjeeling Limited thus transforms into the Kundalini Express in a conclusion that left me with an enormous smile on my face and tears in my eyes.
Tery just coughed harshly and got up to use the bathroom. "What was your favorite part?" I asked cleverly, following her. "There were so many I can't even choose" she answered even more cleverly. She's so full of shit. What matters is I know she is, and she knows I know she is, and we stay together anyway.
My only possible complaint was that Bill Murray was sadly under-utilized. He is to Wes what Johnny Depp is to Tim Burton, in my opinion.
I think I related to this more than Anderson's other movies thanks to the brothers' familiar picayune bickering and sniping. Sadly, I think it would take much more than a trip across a foreign country to repair our family.
Despite this, I absolutely loved it, and I don't think that's just the feel-good Sunday talking. Detractors call Wes a one-trick pony, but I can't get enough of his off-center cinematography, quirky quiet humor, dramatic slow-motion and obscure Rolling Stones soundtracks. An enthusiastic 4.5 out of 5.
