SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

Plustown A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Josephina Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

dragokin In the version i've seen, Hotel Chevalier has been merely the prologue of The Darjeeling Limited. Although weird, the short movie (or intro, in my case) has been more potent than the movie.Jason Schwartzman and Natalie Portman deliver a fine performance. He is an insecure not-so-young lad and she is a manipulative lady in search of something else.As it usually is the case, such a relationship ends in one of the people involved getting hurt. And it is rarely that the insecure person has the guts to end it, usually the manipulative one moves on to the next prey. But you'll have to see The Darjeeling Limited to see how this love story ends.

RainDogJr I saw The Darjeeling Limited on the big screen (during the 49 Muestra International de Cine back in 2007) and certainly I saw this short film, now that I added to my collection the DVD of the film I saw Hotel Chevalier for the second time. In The Darjeeling Limited the great Bill Murray has a very little appearance, is a great very first scene of the film with Murray but there's nothing that will connect Murray's character with our three main characters that are played by Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody and Jason Schwartzman (just that he tried to take the train that our main characters took). Natalie Portman appears less than Murray in Wes Anderson's latest film to date (his next project, Fantastic Mr. Fox, is going to be released on 6 November 2009 in the US), actually she only appears in one sequence for some seconds, she has no dialog, during the whole film, during the time in India she is not present, but only physically. Here there's nothing very clear, well the reasons are certainly not clear but of cure the actions upon those things that happened are more than clear. Jason Schwartzman is great as Jack Whitman but well I guess those complements would be better in my comment for the feature film. Here is all quite strange once Portman's character arrives to the hotel Chevalier, "what the f*** is going on?" she asks, and the song "Where Do You Go To (My Lovely)" (completely unknown by me until I saw this short film, now I carry the soundtrack of The Darjeeling Limited in my iPod) stops just before the first kiss after at least more than a month happens. 10 out of 10

bob the moo At the end of The Darjeeling Limited, Jack has written the end of a short story and it is essentially the majority of the short film Hotel Chevalier. Francis reads it and comments that it is hard to judge without knowing the rest of it and indeed this may have been a reference to the fact that you need to watch this short film in immediate combination with the film. Others have asked why this part of the story was broken up from the film when it is clearly part of the story but my feelings on that are to simply shrug and ask when Wes Anderson ever did anything that was straightforward? So a separate short film it is and to appreciate it you do need to know "the rest of it".Looking back on it from more of a knowledgeable position in regards the character is to introduce a level of understanding and emotional interest that is lacking the first time you watch it. Dealing with the film as a short film in its own right, this is clearly a failing because it cannot (or does not) deliver this on its own but does need the feature to do it. Even with the film it is more a matter of back-story than really informing the events of the short – ie the short fits into the film rather than the short suddenly holding a lot of meaning to the viewer. So in terms of content, while it is "better" watched with the film, it still doesn't deserve to be a separate entity.I suppose the one thing in its defence would be that, as an upmarket trailer, it will really work for Anderson's fans. The short has a great air to it and all the style and tone that exist within his films. The restrained and yet brooding emotion of his two characters are well painted in the dialogue but, more importantly, Schwartzman and Portman nail it – the former in particular showing as much pain as desire in his actions and language. The colours and the shots all make the film look great and Anderson makes great use of the limited space within the hotel and for fans it will be a matter of lapping this up. But for me I have the same reservations as I have had with one or two of his features in the way that the style and manner may interest me but there is nothing of substance to really engage with or feel for.Hotel Chevalier is a strange beast then; it can be viewed in several ways but it is not that great in any of them. As a part of the Darjeeling Limited feature it is a solid couple of scenes but not more or less remarkable than the rest of the film. As a stand alone film it offers style and typically Anderson manner but very little in the way of real meat. While as a high-brow trailer it does have the style and content to excite fans but then also feels a bit "big" just to be used to sell a product. Regardless it does have good stuff in the style, the performances, the simmering emotion and the overall delivery but it badly needed to either be part of the film or expanded and strengthened to be able to stand alone as a short film that "connects" to the feature rather than being "connected" to it (if you appreciate the difference).

movieman0791 Not a real big Anderson fan, but you can count me in on any piece of film that shows off any part of Natalie Portman's impressive ASSETS! Ever since she first enthralled me in her debut performance in Luc Besson's classic The Professional, I have been entranced by this siren of modern cinema. She is a great actress and one of the most beautiful women on the planet, as far as I am concerned. O.K., so this really isn't a review of this short film but more of an homage to a really spectacular female. Check this short out if you want to see Natalie's soft and tender side, get it? You will be somewhat teased, no actual money shot, but for what Anderson gets out of her to put on the screen must have taken considerable trust from Natalie on her part. The short is alright maybe a 6 or 7, but overall gets a 9 from me for Natalie's gorgeous bottom! Check it out guys (and girls, you know who you are) and enjoy!