scintillating indie comedy

Rating: 9/10 (2 April 2006)

"Garden State" is anything but a garden variety romantic comedy. Brilliantly written and directed by Zack Braff (who also plays the lead role), this quirky indie triumph is one of the most delightful and disarming little films to come our way in a long long time.
The ironically named Andrew Largeman is a bit like Holden Caulfield, but without all the articulation about his alienation and angst. In fact, for Andrew, the angst is buried so deep within his psyche that he is completely unable to verbalize what it is that is bothering him. All he knows is that he isn't happy with either his life or himself as a person. Andrew confesses that for most of his time here on earth all he has been able to feel is "numb." As the movie begins, we meet Andrew as a struggling actor living in Los Angeles, having fled his hometown in New Jersey years earlier. Virtually estranged from his parents, Andrew receives the shocking news that his paraplegic mother has died suddenly in a drowning "accident," thus precipitating Andrew's first trip home in ages. As with many literary and cinematic characters, Andrew learns a great deal about himself and about others by making that return trek back to the place of his roots.
It's hard to convey in words just how charming and lovable an experience "Garden State" turns out to be. It is a movie filled with originality, humor, warmth, poignancy and a sly comprehension about life and how best to live it. As Andrew reconnects with his childhood buddies, he learns that not much has changed in their lives either and that they are no closer to finding true happiness than he is. So even though fleeing the town may not have been the answer, staying there certainly wasn't the answer either - or at least so he believes until he meets an idiosyncratic young woman named Sam, delightfully played by Natalie Portman. The two hit it off almost instantly, finding common ground in their peculiarities and eccentricities. What's impressive about Braff's work here is that he never overdoes the quirkiness as so many other filmmakers do. He allows it to filter through his tale in such a way that we find ourselves laughing with the people rather than at them. The folks in this town may not be the smartest or most ambitious people we will ever meet, but somehow they have managed to make life work for them and have remained generally positive and upbeat in the process.
Braff, looking a little like a young Ray Romano, perfectly captures the befuddlement, fear and almost crippling self-consciousness that lay at the root of Andrew's unhappiness, while at the same time conveying the good-naturedness and capacity for loving that provide him with the hope that, against all odds, he will someday achieve fulfillment. He and Portman make such an endearing romantic couple that we just know they will wind up making it in the end. In addition, there are strong supporting performances from Ian Holm, Peter Sarsgaard, Ron Leibman and a whole host of other talented performers.
"Garden State" provides a subtle little homage to "The Graduate" in its closing line - a fitting tribute from a film that captures the offbeat vision and youthful spirit of that earlier classic of anarchic cinema. But "Garden State" is a visionary film in its own right as well.