Garden State
Directed by Zach Braff
By Kathleen Olmstead

Garden State has a promising start. You might not expect greatness but you are hopeful for a quirky, sweet film, which is why its ending of forced optimism is so frustrating.

Andrew Largeman (Zach Braff, who also writes and directs, and is best known for his role on Scrubs) returns to New Jersey for his mother’s funeral. He is a mildly successful actor working as a waiter and floating through life. This is not Rick Moody’s version of the Garden State but it does have similar themes of disaffected 20 somethings and too many drugs. In Largeman’s case, his psychiatrist father prescribes the drugs. Since the age of ten he has lived under the haze of Lithium or Ritalin, leaving him dulled and distant. He leaves his pills in California, using this trip as an excuse to break free and face his past and his emotions.

Braff has assembled a strong supporting cast — Ian Holm, Ron Rifkin and, in particular, Peter Sarsgaard as Largeman’s former best friend Mark. The only actor in danger of falling into a quirky stereotype is Natalie Portman as Sam, the requisite love interest. However, even when she is irritatingly perky it’s easy to see why Largeman is drawn to her.

Throughout the first half of Garden State, Braff lets his actors express subtle moments of caring with scenes that don’t require exposition to be heartfelt. Mark’s mother (Jean Smart) kissing him goodbye after an argumentative morning says far more than the "I remember when…" speeches that fill the film’s second half. Braff is a clever writer and has the knack for the bittersweet but there are far too many confessional scenes — those quiet moments of revelation that can drag a film down.

The trouble is that Braff tries too hard. He tries to say too much while being too surreal. Garden State reasserts the fact that the unknown doesn’t have to be terrifying. Or that being scared isn’t necessarily a bad thing; it’s just a fact of life. He wants us to believe that life is bizarre and challenging if you "stay awake" for it and let it in. All very good points and told, for the most part, enjoyably. If only Braff was satisfied with a slice of life comedy rather than a feel good movie. It makes an interesting debut more Hollywood cookie cutter than necessary. (Fox Searchlight)
A Cinderella Story - Dir. by Mark Rosman
A Home at the End of the World - Dir. by Michael Mayer
Alien Vs. Predator - Dir. by Paul W.S. Anderson
Alila - Dir. by Amos Gitai
Catwoman - Dir. by Pitof
Collateral - Dir. by Michael Mann
Control Room - Dir. by Jehane Noujaim
Festival Express - Dir. by Bob Smeaton
Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle - Dir. by Danny Leiner
Little Black Book - Dir. by Nick Hurran
Mean Creek - Dir. by Jacob Aaron Estes
Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster - Dir. by Bruce Sinofsky and Joel Berlinger
Nothing - Dir. by Vincenzo Natali
Riding Giants - Dir. by Stacey Peralta
Shaolin Soccer - Dir. by Stephen Chow
Since Otar Left - Dir. by Julie Bertuccelli
The Bourne Supremacy - Dir. by Paul Greengrass
The Door in the Floor - Dir. by Tod Williams
The Manchurian Candidate - Dir. by Jonathan Demme
The Village - Dir. by M. Night Shyamalan
Without A Paddle - Dir. by Steven Brill
Zhou Yu’s Train - Dir. by Sun Zhou
Sufjan Stevens' Inner State
Though recently implying that he's tapped out musically, Sufjan Stevens has never created something as pointedly ambitious as The BQE. Originally commissioned by the Brooklyn Academy of Music for a 2007 performance, as a take-home release The BQE consists of an uncompromising essay ostensibly all about the Brooklyn Queens Expressway, a visually stunning film, a stirring orchestral soundtrack, a stereoscopic View-Master reel, and, in limited edition, a 40-page comic book about characters known as the Hooper Heroes.... Read More
Duchess Says - Montreal, QC October 2
Montreal’s no-wave, Moog-rock four-piece Duchess Says are brilliant at working with language. That is so to say, they are francophone, and yet front-woman AC sings more in rhythmic sounds than in anything linguistically discernible. Her male band-mates keep their distance, because her trance-like th... Full Review
Drag Me To Hell Dir. by Sam Raimi
Few modern directors could headline a feature from behind the lens with almost no recognizable stars in front of the camera. Fewer still would make the director's invisible presence utterly crucial to the film's shrieks of laughter and terror. Practically a genre unto himself, Sam Raimi returns to t... Full Review
Social Networking
• Be our friend on MySpace
• Be our fan on Facebook
• Tweet us on twitter
Viewing the August 2004 Issue: • Contents Page • News • Click Hear • Articles --> On the Cover  •  Front Five  •  Points  •  Comics  •  Point of View  •  Questionnaire  •  Research  •  Timeline • Music Reviews --> Recently Reviewed  •  Aggressive Tendencies  •  Beats & Rhymes  •  Frequencies  •  Groove  •  Pop Rocks  •  Wood, Wires & Whiskey  •  Concert Reviews • Motion Reviews --> Recently Reviewed  •  Dvd Reviews  •  Film Reviews  •  Music DVD Reviews • Music School --> N/A • Contests • Contact --> About Us  • Advertising  • Distribution  • Getting Reviewed  • Getting Published  • Letters To The Editor  • Partnerships  • Subscriptions • Exclaim! Radio --> Aggressive Tendencies Radio  • Beats & Rhymes Radio  • Frequencies Radio  • Destination Out Radio  • Groove Radio  • No Future Radio  • Pop Rocks Radio  • Wood, Wires & Whiskey Radio • Exclaim! TV • Home & Latest Issue • Browse Issues