MovieChat Forums > The Darjeeling Limited (2007) Discussion > Was their father homosexual?

Was their father homosexual?

posted 15 years ago by kostisde
9 replies | jump to latest

Something tells me that that's why their mother bailed. She probably couldn't take it anymore. First of all, the car was at the mechanic for 3 months and they were - in the mechanics words: "ehm... waiting for a part from Stuttgart". He was also pretty smitten when he hears Jimmy, not James, Whitman is dead and is close to tears when they leave. Just wondering

One more thing: is the way this film is shot called something specific? I mean the subjects are always shot from a 90 or 180 degree angle. Is this a tribute paid to one of the people that influenced Wes Anderson? Again, just wondering

[–] AutumnTrust 14 years ago

I know this is an old topic, but I'm glad you brought this up.

Years ago, I read some theories and opinions here on IMDb forums for this movie, and one of them was a really well written piece analyzing the whole flashback scene. The writer went into detail describing a possible scenario where James Whitman was in fact having an affair with the auto mechanic. You could see such sadness in the mechanic's face and when he refers to him as "Jimmy Whitman". That, and when Peter hugs him as they're leaving. This, in my own interpretation, is showing that Peter may have known of the affair, and only hugs the mechanic as a way of showing remorse for a mutual love of the person that is James Whitman.

I wish I had saved the post, along with many others I had read on here.
Unfortunately, the forums for this movie are flooded with people who spread hate & negativity. I miss the insightful posts from those who enjoyed the movie.

[–] Gaigan 14 years ago

Uh, he calls him Jimmy and is sad at his death. I would do that for any friend. How is that proof that they were having a gay affair?

[–] AutumnTrust 14 years ago

The thing with Wes' movies is that you have to read in between the lines. They won't blatantly tell you everything. And like Chekov's Gun, they don't show you anything unless it has meaning.

[–] Gaigan 14 years ago

Well, it might be a cultural thing. I don't know how it is for Americans, but where I come from, the way the mechanic reacted to the news of "Jimmy"'s death is the way anyone with a heart would react to the death of a good friend, and only a very weird kind of person would interpret it as a sign of a homosexual romance. But yeah, perhaps Wes did mean it to be that way.

[–] kosk11348 14 years ago

I'm an American and it never crossed my mind that the mechanic was upset enough to suggest he was romantically linked to the father. More like a barber learning that a guy who's hair he's been cutting for 30 years has passed away. I think the OP is reaching more than a little.

Orgies are not too much fun if no one wants to do it with you.

[–] film_ophile 12 years ago

That's exactly how i felt about this question.

The way to have what we want
Is to share what we have.

[–] rmiikku 12 years ago

They don´t show you things if they don't have meaning but that doesn't make him gay. Business seemed to be kind of small scale, it was specialized and run by an old man, father had lot of money and probably was customer there for long time. When Jack hugs him, maybe its because he is embarrassed for his brothers and he is the sensitive one so he feels like he should be apologizing for the group. Or its to comfort the mechanic because he just heard their father is dead. Or maybe the father and mechanic were gays. There are some gay themes in The Life Aquantic so maybe that idea was continued.

[–] peahen78 10 years ago

The hug makes total sense now! I thought it was just a quirky thing to have Jack do, or maybe Brody just did it for the heck of it.

[–] peahen78 10 years ago

*Peter. Sorry, only saw it once. ;)