‘Hotel Chevalier’

When Wes Anderson’s “Darjeeling Limited” opens wide Friday, it will be preceded by his 13-minute short, “Hotel Chevalier.” The movie, set in an old-fashioned Paris hotel room, was shot before Jason Schwartzman’s character became Jack Whitman, the youngest of the three brothers traveling across India. Pre-voyage of self-discovery, he’s just a guy with a melancholy disposition, a fresh betrayal and a bottomless wallet – a combination that allows him to brood in high, exquisite style until his ex (Natalie Portman, not quite as naked as you’ve been led to believe) shows up to rock the boat. Set mostly to a weird and lyrical 1969 hit by Peter Sarstedt, “Hotel Chevalier” captures a couple in the throes of a breakup, with all the guarded, stewy passion that that implies.