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Amazon.co.uk Review
Zach Braff (from the TV show Scrubs) stars in his writing/directing debut, Garden State--normally a doomed act of hubris, but Braff pulls it off with unassuming charm. An emotionally numb actor in L.A., Andrew (Braff) comes back to New Jersey after nine years away for his mother's funeral. Andrew avoids his bitter father (Ian Holm) and joins old friends (including the superb Peter Sarsgaard) in a round of parties. Along the way he meets a girl (Natalie Portman) with demons of her own; bit by bit the two offer each other a little healing. Plotwise, Garden State is familiar stuff, a cross between The Graduate and a Meg Ryan movie, but Braff has an eye for goofy but resonant visual images, an ear for lively dialogue, and a great cast. The result is surprisingly fresh and funny. --Bret Fetzer, Amazon.com
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
28 of 31 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This film suprised me. I went into it knowing very little about the story but thinking it may be interesting to see what Zach Braff had to offer behind the camera (usually a good way of seeing how their mind works). As a consequence of this I starting watching it with a blank mind and no pre-conceived ideas. In retrospect, I think this may have been what they were aiming for as I was in pretty much the same mental state as Andrew (Zach Braff) is in the film - a numb zone where the world seems to be going faster than him, he feels he is always one step behind but doesn't have the energy to get out of the rut. The fact that his psychiatrist father (Ian Holm, I am a big fan!) is the one who's been dosing him all through his childhood is a nice twist and adds an interesting, if slightly underused, subplot.
As the film progresses over the last couple of days before Andrew takes off for pastures new, he stops his meds and this is where the direction and acting come into their own. It would be too easy to ram that fact down the viewers throats, but the very gradual re-awakening of Andrews senses and the bizarre journey he takes to find a suprise present for him with his girlfriend (a very talented Natalie Portman - George Lucas, you should be ashamed) and old friend (an equally excellent Peter Sarsgaard), which include perfectly timed comic moments which you can recognize from your own experiences (the guy in the hardware store anyone?) are dealt with at a strolling pace. Sometimes this pace of enlightenment is difficult to get right, but as the film wends its way from one well shot scene to another, you realize that you've been sucked in on his mental and physical trip and that you are really enjoying the ride. His journey really ends 15 minutes before the end of running time with a moment of release on the edge of a bottomless abyss (it makes sense in the film, honestly) and as I watched this, I realized that I was smiling a big, deep, warm smile. Films like this don't come along too often and when then do they blind-side you in all the right ways. Excellent acting and direction all round, so get yourself a big cup of tea, some chocolate digestives, then settle back, watch and enjoy!
As the film progresses over the last couple of days before Andrew takes off for pastures new, he stops his meds and this is where the direction and acting come into their own. It would be too easy to ram that fact down the viewers throats, but the very gradual re-awakening of Andrews senses and the bizarre journey he takes to find a suprise present for him with his girlfriend (a very talented Natalie Portman - George Lucas, you should be ashamed) and old friend (an equally excellent Peter Sarsgaard), which include perfectly timed comic moments which you can recognize from your own experiences (the guy in the hardware store anyone?) are dealt with at a strolling pace. Sometimes this pace of enlightenment is difficult to get right, but as the film wends its way from one well shot scene to another, you realize that you've been sucked in on his mental and physical trip and that you are really enjoying the ride. His journey really ends 15 minutes before the end of running time with a moment of release on the edge of a bottomless abyss (it makes sense in the film, honestly) and as I watched this, I realized that I was smiling a big, deep, warm smile. Films like this don't come along too often and when then do they blind-side you in all the right ways. Excellent acting and direction all round, so get yourself a big cup of tea, some chocolate digestives, then settle back, watch and enjoy!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Garden State is a bit of a dark horse. I was expecting it to be fairly awful because I had never heard of it and the cover makes it look extra cheesy. I was wrong about that.
Within afew minutes I was totally into it. The opening scene on the plane shows straight away that this guy is not normal. He is the only one not panicing and grabbing the oxygen masks because the plane looks to be about to crash.
From then on its a few days in the life of Largeman (JD from Scrubs). Good and bad things happen to Largeman but he's not really bothered one way or another. The good include meeting up with old friends and meeting Natalie Portman. The bad include his mum dying, and a dog humping his leg (or maybe that was a good thing). It's one of those films that will either bore you to death, or you will enjoy every moment. It might annoy you, it might not. Best to just watch it with an open mind. There are plenty of comedy moments as well as sad ones. The soundtrack is excellent (if you like Chillout music like Zero 7) and there are plenty of slow motion effects (to music). These are balanced out pretty well and not over-done or too cheesy. There are plenty of weird characters for JD to meet along the way such as the nerdiest Knight of the round table ever, the stupidest cop ever, the least successful pet owners ever, the worst funeral singer ever, the friendliest guide dog ever, the doctor with the most certificates ever, and many more.
All in all Garden State is a nice chillout film that is like eating a bowl of Ready Brek. Watch it, and then get up and glow....
Within afew minutes I was totally into it. The opening scene on the plane shows straight away that this guy is not normal. He is the only one not panicing and grabbing the oxygen masks because the plane looks to be about to crash.
From then on its a few days in the life of Largeman (JD from Scrubs). Good and bad things happen to Largeman but he's not really bothered one way or another. The good include meeting up with old friends and meeting Natalie Portman. The bad include his mum dying, and a dog humping his leg (or maybe that was a good thing). It's one of those films that will either bore you to death, or you will enjoy every moment. It might annoy you, it might not. Best to just watch it with an open mind. There are plenty of comedy moments as well as sad ones. The soundtrack is excellent (if you like Chillout music like Zero 7) and there are plenty of slow motion effects (to music). These are balanced out pretty well and not over-done or too cheesy. There are plenty of weird characters for JD to meet along the way such as the nerdiest Knight of the round table ever, the stupidest cop ever, the least successful pet owners ever, the worst funeral singer ever, the friendliest guide dog ever, the doctor with the most certificates ever, and many more.
All in all Garden State is a nice chillout film that is like eating a bowl of Ready Brek. Watch it, and then get up and glow....
30 of 37 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Since we watched "Leon - The Professional", my wife and I have been dazzled by the performances of Natalie Portman, and continued picking up several movies just because she performed in them. When weighing whether or not to try this film, I knew that it was not the kind of story I liked, but decided to give it a chance anyway because Portman was starring. The overall result was not bad at all, since even though I did not feel strongly identified with the characters, I got to see an interesting story that is mostly driven by its well-written dialogues.
Andrew (Zach Braff) left his parents' house several years ago and traveled to the other side of the country to establish himself in Los Angeles and start an acting career. He was relatively successful at first, but things cooled down and now he is working as a waiter in a Vietnamese restaurant. He has been taking medication for his depression for a long time and lives a vacuous existence. Everything is about to change though, because his father, with whom he has not talked in a while, calls him to reveal that Andrew's mother died. Now he has to go back home to New Jersey and face the world he left behind, including his friends and family. In the process, he meets Sam (Portman) who has issues of her own; but the relationship that begins delivers a thoughtful view of what it feels like to be lost in life when one becomes an adult, and how sometimes we need to shake things up to start moving forward again.
Zach Braff undoubtedly meets expectations in his debut as a director and writer, with an engaging script and a well-filmed movie. His performance as Andrew is inspired and completely believable; but he is assisted in this aspect by the excellent Natalie Portman, who has an uncanny ability to portray extroverted girls that speak their mind. These two guys are complemented by an array of colorful characters that add spice to this film. The result is a production that is filled with funny situations and that has a considerable degree of emotions involved. Even though it was not a film that touched me, I can appreciate its quality, therefore I recommend it.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
best natalie portman movie ever
I watched Garden State 6 times in a row and every time it gets better
amazing soundtrack too
amazing soundtrack too
Published 13 months ago by wally
Good film
Zach Braff is a good actor and this film is slightly more serious than his usual work. However he pulls it off very well. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Pringah
not exactly what i was expecting
Let me start by saying great soundtrack! Any film with Coldplay and The Shins in it gets at least one star for the songs!
But now, the film itself. Read more
But now, the film itself. Read more
Published 16 months ago by John Heyes
I really liked it
Zach Braff's movie Garden state is exceptional. Not only does it have Natalie Portman in it, but it's one of those rare movies which really combines a good story with good, maybe... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Eolake
You have to be the type of person...
I understand why some people don't like it. As someone else referred to it, it's a marmite film. If you like films like Donnie Darko, Sunshine Cleaning, Juno etc. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Snowden
A lot of fuss about nothing.
In recent years there has been a bit of a critical backlash against American 'independent' cinema, where reviewers have complained that the little low budget films, supposedly... Read more
Published on 2 May 2010 by Mr. Te Stringer
Dull faux-indie rubbish!
Apart from the clichéd cinematography, clichéd soundtrack, dull dialogue, and often frighteningly amateurish acting, (Zach Braff apparently thinks gazing blankly into... Read more
Published on 24 April 2010 by Ernie
garden state review
I came, I saw, I purchased a dvd. I waited, the world turned, the dvd arrived. Its condition brought to mind the arrival of a perfect moment, so perfect it was almost unheard of, I... Read more
Published on 2 April 2010 by Peter Mclaren
Poor little Jelly. Brilliant film though.
It appears we have another marmite film from looking at the reviews on here. I could have guessed though: I watched this sometime ago with an ex-girlfriend - she hated and I loved... Read more
Published on 18 Feb 2010 by Boddicker
Enjoyable and hard hitting drama brilliance
Actor Large (Braff) returns to attend his mother's funeral and when he meets Sam (Portman) he decides to stay home longer where he begins to rediscover his past. Read more
Published on 16 Feb 2010 by Stampy
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