Great movie, perfect balance of comedy and drama

Rating: Null/10 (2 August 2004)

I saw this movie and I was actually pretty shocked as to how good it was. The characters are very real and easy to relate to, I felt like I knew somebody who was or could be each character in the movie. The subtle comedic touches had everyone in the theatre laughing hysterically, while the emotional overtones and realistic, and at times, awkwardly brilliant character development had us wanting to learn more and more about what was going to happen to these people. I remember not wanting the movie to end, because I really felt attached to the characters. The soundtrack is very well-chosen, and the music is integrated very well into the movie, except for the couple of times there were about 5 seconds of music that seemed to get cut off a bit early. My only real complaint is that the ending may have been a bit abrupt, but it's really not bad enough to take anything away from this great film.
Aside from maybe one or two lines delivered a bit awkwardly by Zach Braff, the acting was really solid. Natalie Portman proved to us that she really doesn't suck at acting, and that the crazy, off-the-wall girl you were always afraid to talk to can be really enticing.
As a long-time Scrubs fan, I was afraid to see basically the same type of dramadey "funny show that likes to be cool and have a message," but was pleasantly surprised to get something much more intriguing. Zach Braff goes above and beyond all expectations I ever had of him. Here's to hoping this isn't a fluke.