Film review: The Darjeeling Limited

Wes Anderson is the king of quirky comedies and his latest offering is both brilliant and infuriating.

Following three emotionally screwed-up brothers on a train voyage across India, the film charts their spiritual quest in an almost cartoon or dreamlike manner. Cutting between beautifully staged scenes and sharp, witty dialogue, director Wes Anderson creates what feels more like a visual scrapbook than a narrative, allowing prolonged sequences that seem somewhat self-indulgent, even though well executed.

Owen Wilson, Adrian Brody and Jason Schwartzman’s characters are well drawn but remain frustratingly distant as they dose up on Indian cough syrup, release cobras and become embroiled in a nasty pepper spray incident for which they’re ejected from the train in the middle of the desert. Here, with only their matching Louis Vuitton suitcases and a laminating machine, their journey – and the film itself – really begins. Worth watching.

• DVD is out NOW