Treppenwitz: Contextual Exploitation and other musings

A few nights ago, in anticipation of the release of his new film Moonrise Kingdom, I caught up with one of Wes Anderson's earlier films. Despite being a very acclaimed and respected director, I've never sought out his work, even though I very much enjoyed the one film of his that I'd seen prior (1998's rather lovely Rushmore). So I popped the Darjeeling Limited into my DVD player and had another rather lovely evening. The nice thing about Wes Anderson is that you don't have to study his entire oeuvre to spot the man's quirks and interests. Despite the fact that some of his stories may dip into dark territories, the overall atmosphere is very light and frivolous, creating quite the odd juxtaposition.

And my, what dark places the Darjeeling Limited indeed stops at. If you don't wish to know any plot details, then please brave on with extreme caution and trepidation. From the start we know that Owen Wilson's character Francis has been involved in some of accident (it's as plain as the nose and bandages on his face. Boom boom.). As the film continues, it becomes apparent that this was as a result of a deliberate motorcycle accident. This culminates in an incredible scene involving Francis removing his bandages.

In the midst of an exiting and nuanced performance by Wilson, this scene represents almost 'the eye of the storm'. The frantic energy is gone, completely absorbed by the melancholy that almost threatens to burst from Francis' eyes. His face is bruised, not yet healed. His body, as established in earlier scenes, still broken. The spiritual trip he envisioned with his brothers has gone awry. In this moment, Francis is completely defeated. It's an wonderfully moving moment within the film on its own merits, but let us consider for a moment a larger context. The Darjeeling Limited made its world première at the Venice Film Festival on 3rd September 2007 (thank you Wikipedia). This was a week later than Wilson was admitted into a Californian hospital amid reports of depression and a suicide attempt. Within this context, the scene above is completely heartbreaking.

There are many moments like this dotted in film history. I can't have been the only one struck with sadness hearing Heath Ledger's Joker declare that he and Batman were "destined to do this forever". Moments like these must be incredibly difficult for filmmakers and editors. Owen Wilson was lucky enough to survive whatever ordeal he went through and is now happily (one would imagine) married and enjoying his deserved success. In a few years, his brief dalliance with California's health system will no doubt be forgotten and people (Owen and Wes included) will hopefully be able to enjoy the warmth of the Darjeeling Limited without having the real world awkwardly intrude. On the other hand, editing the Dark Knight must have been like stroking a raw nerve with a blunt and rusty razor, especially when there are lines that are so on the nose as the one mentioned above. However, such lines are thematically pivotal to film and it is Ledger's performance (for the most part) raises the film to something more than just a cinematic summer distraction.

Yes, it's only fiction, but there's an awful lot of real people working on every film you enjoy and I bet each of them have a story that could rival the tragedy of any Hamlet or Willy Loman. If only we could set them all to a kicking Peter Sarstedt tune.

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Other Musings

Images I have digested in the last 48 hours:

Moonrise Kingdom hit UK cinemas yesterday. I went to an 11:40am showing, because I am a bad ass. I was going straight from my hair cut, which I'm not sure about. I am sure, however, that Moonrise Kingdom is very very very very very very very very good. So good, in fact, that it inspired me to go home and cook French toast because it reminded me of my camping experience.

My original plan for the evening involved going to bed around 9pm in order to wake up at 1am to watch Game 6 of the Devils/Rangers series. I couldn't sleep so I watched the Prestige instead. Good use of my time. I might go into it further at a later date, but I really think that it is one of the most imaginatively constructed and downright incredible films of the last 30 years. Why yes, that is a completely arbitrary length time.

Sleep exhaustion may have got the best of me, but last night's hockey game was incredible. I've been an active New Jersey fan since 2008 and they've never been out of the first round until this year. Now they're the Conference Champions. In an attempt not to wake up my housemates, all my celebrating consisted of texting exclamation points to my brother and silently fist pumping. I really wish I'd partaken in more team sports when I was younger. Shame I let the PE department at my school put me down.

But that wasn't the only sporting event I was watching this weekend. After waking up late and doing a bit of studying, I cooked myself some french toast and sat down to watch the qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix. I know lots of people find Formula 1 incredibly dull, especially when it's at a circuit that famously doesn't lend itself to overtaking, but I really love watching any skilled person go about their passion (see the previous post). I find it so hard to comprehend how accurate these drivers are given the speeds that these cars travel. Plus, it's sunny and it's Monte Carlo. Hardcore yacht porn.

So, while everyone else was outside in the sunshine, I was moping about my room until I kicked myself into gear and went for a cinema trip. I finally caught up with Julie Delpy's 2 Days in New York. It's rather funny. Definitely the best performance I've seen from Chris Rock. Amazing what a talented person like him can do once someone gives him a well rounded character instead of a one-note joke dispenser.