Posted: 08/07/2004

Garden State

(2004)

by Erin Paulson

TV’s Zach Braff makes a strong first directorial impression.

Too many comedies these days have absolutely no concept of subtlety, preferring instead to violently attack their audience with the typical, nauseating, how-obvious-can-we-be-and-still-get-a-laugh-out-of-the-mindless-drones jokes. When a comedy is released that is the polar opposite of the expected, which exalts the rare, quirky, and unusual sense of humor that has been so devalued by sickeningly plebian films such as White Chicks or Jackass, it almost makes you want to kiss the feet of those responsible. In this case, it would be novice writer/director/actor Zach Braff, of NBC’s Scrubs fame.

Braff’s character, Andrew Largeman, returns home to New Jersey (hence the title) for the first time in nine years, for his mother’s funeral. “Large” has been on antidepressants for so long that he can no longer conceive what’s wrong with him, and is so detached from emotion that he can’t recall what it is to feel. The film explores Large’s realization that he will never truly feel if he continues to be under the heel of his excessive list of antidepressants, the awakening he experiences as he confronts his psychiatrist father who had the brilliant idea to prescribe such a massive quantity of drugs in the first place, and his unexpected love for a beautiful stranger.

A stellar cast helps to relate Braff’s quasi-autobiographical screenplay. Braff himself gives a wonderfully restrained performance that not only illustrates the disconnection that Large feels in the beginning of the film, but presents the emotional stirring he feels throughout the arc of the story. Natalie Portman (The Professional, Star Wars Episodes I and II) plays Sam, the girl that seems to rescue Largeman with her eccentric and loveable idiosyncrasies and thirst for life. She shines with a light unsurpassed by many actresses who have been in the business far longer, with such unbridled honesty and emotion that she cannot smile without your face echoing hers. If you think Garden State achieves little, one guaranteed success is Portman’s capability to make everyone in the audience fall head over heels in love with her (or her character… or both). Peter Sarsgaard (Shattered Glass) is Mark, a friend of Largeman’s from high school who has yet to vacate his mother’s house. His performance is decidedly not to be undone by the talent surrounding him; Sarsgaard stands his ground and charms his audience in a matter of moments, extracting compassion and understanding from even the most disconnected cynic. The always-amazing Ian Holm (From Hell, Lord of the Rings) portrays Largeman’s father, whose part, although contained to just a few scenes, is not easily forgotten.

The cinematography alone is enough to warrant several screenings of Garden State; shot by Lawrence Sher (Kissing Jessica Stein), there is hardly a scene that isn’t stunning, from the aerial shots of the characters in a swimming pool and Sam’s backyard, to the expansive pull out shot of the main characters at the top of a canyon-like trench. The film’s quality is further improved by its soundtrack, which is almost like a greatest hits of recent indie rock. Containing tracks by The Shins, Coldplay, Remy Zero, and a cover of The Postal Service’s Such Great Heights by Iron and Wine, Braff uses these songs as more of a plot device than a typical soundtrack. Each song is exceedingly appropriate in its place in the story, increasing the film’s emotional hold on the audience.

Garden State is not a film you see if you crave an action movie, or any film based on pure, unadulterated escapism, or even the expected three-act structure complete with rising action, climax, and falling action. It is, however, a movie you see when you need to be reminded how beautiful it can be to meet a stranger, to cry, to laugh, or even to return to a home you had managed to escape for years. Long before the end you will want to fall in love so badly it’ll hurt. The utter lack of complexity in the story could, as others will undoubtedly argue, seem far too minimalist to keep anyone’s attention, but this is not the case with Garden State. Its subject matter is so relatable that I would be shocked to hear of someone’s inability to perceive some aspect of his or her own lives in the characters.

Although I loved this film as much as I expected to, I wouldn’t consider it the epitome of cinematic perfection. While the majority of the film defies direct genre classification, the ending, though appropriate, chooses instead to follow in the footsteps of so many of its romantic comedy predecessors. However, if that is my largest complaint about the success of Garden State, then there definitely isn’t much to criticize. It’s the best feel-good film I’ve seen in quite a while. If it doesn’t make you want to fall in love, or appreciate the love you might already have, if you aren’t amused by its peculiar sense of realism-based humor, or if your eyes aren’t encompassed by the overwhelming beauty of some of the cinematography, then you are a heartless, hopeless person with absolutely no sense of quality cinema. You should probably go see Catwoman instead.

Garden State opened in select cities August 6th, and will open nation wide on August 20th.

Erin Paulson is a writer and photographer living in Chicago.

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