a tuesday night in los angeles. normally, for me, that means crusing home from work on the Fox lot up the windy Beverly Glen and over the hill to my quaint 4-plex in Sherman Oaks. do some laundry, maybe. eat a string cheese and sit on the couch and watch some TV. i live a very exciting life. don't be jealous, please.
recently, however, my tuesday night shot just past the excitement of pulling mozerella whisps off string by string as i made plans to meet up with an old friend at la's uber theater, the arclight, to see a screening of Wes Anderson's latest (and arguably greater than Life Aquatic) flick entitled "The Darjeeling Limited." not only that, but following the screening there was a Q&A with none other than Mr. Wes Anderson, Mr. Roman Coppola, and Mr. Adrian Brody. yahtzee!
i arrived at the arclight in a tizzy due to the parking lot i was trying to naviagte through on my way there. la traffic is such a bear. as i was riding down the elevator with some other fellow screening goers, we scoffed at the huge line that had formed outside the theater. apparently, there was also, in addition to the Variety screening we were attending, a PGA screening, a WGA screening, AND another random private screening. needless to say, there were tons of lost people trying to figure out which of the 9000 lines they should be in to get their respective screening tickets. signs, people. just read the signs. it ain't rocket science.
luckily for me, my plus-one had gotten there early and was already in the lobby waiting for me. we chatted, said some friendly "how ARE you-s?" and then made our way to the bar. i sipped on a nice glass of white wine as i surveyed the crowd, partly for famous faces but also just for interesting ones. i was already tired but for some reason i slirpped down that sweet vino nector like it was going our of style. probably not the BEST idea as i was kinda tipsy upon entering the theater and trying to locate my reserved seat. 34W....35W....36W....found her. i parked my booty and sat back and waited for magic to happen.
before the main feature, they played "part 1" of the movie which was a short film shot nearly a year earlier entitled "hotel chevalier." the short starred natalie portman and jason schwartzman as lovers reuniting for one night in fabulous hotel room in france (where schwartzman's character has been living for some time). it's simplie, but (as with everything wes anderson does) beautiful. i really enjoy scenes like this short, one in which there aren't any frills; just two people, talking, interacting, reacting, discovering, loving, laughing, hurting.
after the short, the main feature started. i knew from the very first 20 minutes that wes anderson had once again managed to highten my senses, reveal the vibrancy of a new world, and dissect intricate, broken, unique, and wonderfully flawed characters. if you haven't seen the film, i won't give away too much of the story, but i have to mention the relationship of the three brothers: owen wilson, jason schwartzman, and adrian brody. again, wonderfully flawed characters played by actors who understand the beauty in imperfection. each of the brothers has their own "issues" which are far darker than your average joe's everyday problems. however, it's this journey, this adventure aboard the darjeeling, that brings healing to each of them in very poignant ways. this movie is first and foremost a journey film and, as such, has to show you where they've been for the destination to make any sense at all. it's certainly a fun ride, but one that becomes very emotional, even spiritual at times. i found myself aboard the train with them, riding hopeful in my pastel 2-piece pajamas, learning along with them as they discovered their love for each other and how to battle their inner demons.
another thing i truly love and respect about wes is his visual style. his attention to detail is astounding. his richness of color and texture is bold and risky, but he always makes it work. i love that the place, things, colors, objects are just as much characters and the human beings spouting out lines of dialogue. he truly creates worlds.
i certainly enjoyed the dajeeling limited far more than life aquatic. much more heart and a much "cleaner" story to follow. i can't say where it falls in relation to bottle rocket and rushmore, but it certainly still runs behind tenanbaums. love that film.
after the film was over, i actually found myself in tears. partly because of how moving the film had turned out to be, partly because i had had some wine before the show, and partly because i was wishing that i could makes films like that. i'd say my emotions were about 70% due to the latter. i was both intimidated and inspired, which is how i usually feel when i experience great works of art in any form. i wiped my wet eyes and saddled up to hear the highlight of the night: a panel q & a with wes anderson, adrian brody, and roman coppola...
now, let me just say this once and for all...one of my BIGGEST pet peaves are bad moderators. and, let me tell you, out of all the q & a's i've had the priveledge to attend here in la, almost all of them have been HORRIBLY moderated. unfortunately, tonight would be no different. i knew things were going down hill as soon as the moderator asked wes "so, tell us what it was like to write with roman and owen." to which wes responded, "well, uh, i wrote the script with roman and jason, actually..." it was at that point (like 20 seconds in) that i started getting angry. i was trying so hard to just sit back and enjoy myself but the idiot moderator kept making the dumbest comments and mistakes. i couldn't believe that out of EVERYONE in la, a city stacked 30-deep with actors, performers, etc, that THIS PERSON was who they chose to do this job. ok, so she works for a major publication. she can write...doesn't mean she can interview celebs and moderate a panel. two different things. if you sense hostility it's because it's there. again, i think this mostly stems from the fact that being a celebrity interviewer/moderator is something i would absolutely love to do. it just frustrates me, that's all.
all in all, it was an amazing night. one i won't soon forget. i learned insider things like the fact that wes hadn't initally intended for jason's character to be the same in both "hotel chevalier" and "darjeeling" but decided to bridge the two films a year after shooting the short when he was brainstorming with roman and jason. i'm really lucky to live in a city that presents filmmakers so readily to those looking to be inspired. i hope one day to be speaking on a panel myself.
wow. that's really the only word that comes to mind, as arcane and simple as it may seen. it's very rare that a movie effects me so much so that I literally can't stop talking about it. "no country for old men" is one of the most intriguing, edge-of-your-seat rides i've had in a long time. not only is the acting top-notch, the cinemtography breathtaking, and the action intense, but the writing is strange, fresh, and rough around the edges. 
