The Sure Repetition of Humans; or Why the Darjeeling Limited is amazing.

I just watched the Darjeeling limited - as you might guess from the secondary heading. I wanted to see that film when it was released back in November/December but given my cross-continental living arrangements at the time I seemed to miss it in all cinemas in two continents.

In January I received in the post one gift voucher for £20 for HMV which I decided would be used to buy the Darjeeling Limited. I waited, and waited, and then spent a week toying with the online version of HMV only to discover that retail vouchers have to be spent in the shop and not online. This means that all dvds are £5 more expensive. Why? I have no idea, because I have to do the leg work to buy the product and the online site offers free delivery. This however is beside the point, a side note if you will.

I finished watching it only a moment ago: long enough to arrange some items to be posted in the morning, make an ebay payment, and make a chai tea latte (which is cooling). I loved it. Wes Anderson I applaud thee. A stunning piece of cinematography that is, without a doubt, a true reflection of life - whether we notice it or not.

When I was a fiction writer, in my early high school years, I would write stories that would end in the same way they began but with a newer depth and different perspective. I was obsessed with this artistic form of writing; being able to bring something fully back to the point that was made at the beginning: like we had all been on a long elaborate journey that brought us back to where we originally were. An amazing concept. One which the Darjeeling Limited captures so beautifully.

That is life though, isn't it? We keep looping in large circles without really knowing. Things change. People grow. We learn. We don't. I suppose because time itself is circular it provides a lot of opportunity for repetition, we can cast our minds back to what we were doing this time yesterday, a week ago, or a year ago (if our memory serves us so kindly).

Perhaps this is the only way that we can discover our growth, is by reflecting on our past selves; by looking at where we came from and seeing where we are now. Sometimes we will see what we set out to achieve, sometimes we might no longer like who we have become, but we always return to a centre point of comparison whether the result is positive or negative.

I don't think we were made to exist on a linear path, although Western society seems to teach that principle. Eastern beliefs, i'm sure, are purely based on cycles - in my mind I visuals spirals more.

Perhaps this is where the mental bombardment of life sets in, when we start to look at things in a linear perspective rather than cyclical.

Wes Anderson has such a wonderful talent for capturing true life in his films through symbolism, artistic actions and short term events that culminate in the entire movie. Perhaps that's how we should be living and viewing our own lives and progression: in shorts (not literally in short cut trousers, but in short movies) - Short term goals; short term adventures. Give ourselves a chance to see our gradual progression, growth and change, so that we can assess it and ensure it's where we actually want to go. Right now, for me, I would love to be running after a train in India with no baggage (as I drink my Chai tea and sit in awe of the Darjeeling Limited).