Quirkly little drama doesn't disappoint

Rating: 8/10 (29 July 2005)

Zach Braff is one lucky guy. At the start of 2004, he was just the lowly star of some of that rubbish that Americans put on TV; but by the end of the year, he's the director, writer and star of a successful and critically acclaimed movie! Garden State is the latest quirky little drama to be released independently. It seems like these sorts of films will get praised whether they're good or not these days, but to Braff's credit; this one actually isn't bad. While the film feels underdone in certain places, and the story could have been fleshed out better; Braff handles his themes with care and attention, and it's obvious throughout that this is a project that the young writer/director/actor really cared about; and that translates into the vibrancy and vitality of the story. The film follows themes of maturity and responsibility and it follows a troubled young man (Braff), who returns home to his state of New Jersey after a leave of nine years. While home he reunites with his old friends and meets a new one, in the form of serial liar; Samantha (Natalie Portman).
Pretty much as soon as the film starts, you can see that it's by a young, first time, director. Early in the film, Braff experiments with different shots, such as the bathroom mirror scene; which seems to be an attempt to show his character's broken state of mind. Considering he's a TV actor, Zach Braff's acting isn't at all bad; he suits the role that he's written himself like a glove, and his performance gives the whole piece an element of realism. The extraordinarily beautiful Natalie Portman stars alongside Braff as his opposite number. Portman delivers her performance with just the right amount of cuteness, while slightly hinting that her character might not quite be all smiles and sweetness. An excellent ensemble is topped off by Peter Sarsgaard and Ian Holm, who both do well with the roles Braff has given them. There isn't really anything on the technical side that makes this film stand out, but films like this are more about characters and story anyway; and this film has both of them. The film is interesting throughout, as the character are nurtured and we get to know them; and the film finally pays off when we finally get the end. All in all, I wouldn't go as far as to call this great or a masterpiece; but it's a solid movie and I'm not surprised at the positive reception it has won itself.