The Darjeeling Limited

WES Anderson walks into a bar clad in a white suit, spills his typically pastel-coloured smoothie on his lap, and leaves the bar without a mark on it.

Not the set-up for a woeful comedic turn, but rather the abnormal phenomena of how this director has managed to avoid virtually any backlash in a usually artistically suspicious critical community.

With more stars than a Michelin chef, it seems languid words such as ‘poignant,' ‘quirky,' and ‘visionary' are now positively akin to films with day-glo fish and ‘Look At Me' eccentricities.

But while The Darjeeling Limited is bursting with Anderson's usual vivid aesthetic, the colours are merely from the stunning Indian milieu in his most restrained film since Rushmore.

It's a gorgeous travelogue as three brothers – Francis (Owen Wilson), Peter (Adrien Brody) and Jack (Jason Schwartzman) – embark on a journey of discovery across the continent after their father's death to reaffirm the long-frayed bonds that once connected them.

Soon it's apparent they're a trio of utter screw-ups, full of tacit grief for obvious reasons, and devoid of direction, both in their journey and in their lives, particularly in Francis' case.

The heavily bandaged Texan, for once playing dad, forgoes the usual dippy schtick and emerges as a much more vivid, human presence than in his previous stoner incarnations.

Similarly, Adrien Brody combines pathos with dignity, a very tricky act to pull off.

Essential to the mix is Hotel Chevalier – the short that plays between the main feature – which sees Schwartzman spending fraught moments with his ex (Natalie Portman).

With so many of Jack's gags in the feature stemming from this 12-minute lovers' tryst, his lugubrious, dark-eyed character seems comparatively underwritten without it.

So basically don't take the 'Watch The Film Alone' option on this DVD release.

But despite the great cast and breathtaking sweeping cinematography from Anderson's long-time cohort Robert Yeoman, the film does lose steam once the boys alight from the train, morphing from a considered ensemble act into a series of overwrought set pieces.

But this is still sad, funny and touching – substance FINALLY winning over style.

Extra-wise, the disc is pretty flimsy, which is disappointing, considering other DVDs from the director have been double-disc affairs with commentaries, outtakes and interviews.

Then again, this is Anderson at his rawest: bumph not included.

The Darjeeling Limited is out now on DVD.