Garden State  (2004)

Starring: Zach Braff, Natalie Portman, Peter Sarsgaard
Director: Zach Braff

Rating: R

Distributor: Fox Searchlight

Release Date: 07.30.04

Review Posted: 08.08.04

Spoilers: None

By Christopher T. Bryan

A Funny and Introspective "State" of Mind

Writer-Director Zach Braff’s debut film, Garden State, is witty, introspective and often hilarious.  If nothing else, it proves that Braff will be around for a long time after his television show, Scrubs, goes off the air.

Garden State is Braff’s baby, beyond writing and directing the film, Braff stars as Andrew Largeman who returns home to New Jersey after ten years, most recently spent in Los Angeles where he is trying to make it as an actor while waiting tables.  His life in Los Angeles is anything but fulfilling, yet he still doesn’t look forward to the visit home where he knows he will have to confront the rift that has developed between he and his psychiatrist father (Ian Holm) who has kept him full of pharmaceuticals for the better part of his waking life.  While avoiding the confrontation, he runs into old high school friends and meets Sam (Natalie Portman) a free-spirited dreamer who inspires Largeman to let loose and feel. 

This is the first film, possibly ever, where I felt like a director was sitting me down and telling me a story one-on-one.  Braff has stated in interviews that he was trying to make a movie that would speak to twenty-something’s and he has done just that.  He captures the expectations of the first homecoming after leaving the place you grew up in and perfectly depicts the awkwardness that often prevails over the romantic ideas one may have conjured.  Garden State doesn’t lay it on heavy though, it is charmingly quirky while its earnestness disarms viewers and leaves them open to indulge in Braff’s story.

Everything works from the cinematography that jumps between wide open spaces, showing that Large and Sam are mere specs in the whole scheme of things, to close-ups that illustrate that the two complete each other.  Braff uses harsh lighting to depict both Los Angeles and his parents’ home while Jersey is full of warm-vibrant colors and Sam’s house is cluttered and lived in.

The actors are genuine and pure.  Braff has to depict Largeman as assuredly confused and he pulls it off well.  Braff’s lines are delivered in a kind of tired monotone until the effects of his drugs wear off and we get a glimpse of what is inside.  Portman gives her best performance yet, entirely wild, carefree, and gut-wrenching, we feel her emotions both through her dialogue and her facial expressions.  The role of Mark, an unassuming pot-head, is tailor fit to Peter Sarsgaard who comes off as nonchalantly threatening and manages to perfectly complement the characters of Sam and Largeman.

To top it off, the soundtrack is phenomenal.  Braff has put together music from artists that speak to a generation (or at least to me).  The songs are highly emotional yet unconventional and make you believe that a song from The Shins can truly change your life.

Garden State is a brilliant film that delivers a message without getting lofty.  It is a story that is light-hearted, but it demands introspection and is pulled off so well that Braff has me excited as to what he will put his talents to next.

Film Rating: êêêêê  (out of 5)

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