Garden State Poster

Garden State (2004)

Comedy | Romance 
Rayting:   7.5/10 207.1K votes
Country: USA
Language: English | Klingon
Release date: 13 January 2005

A quietly troubled young man returns home for his mother's funeral after being estranged from his family for a decade.

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User Reviews

daobankechi 21 September 2004

A very promising film debut by Zach Braff.

The plot isn't all that original, the movie isn't all that flawless, but "Garden State" has a unique and sincere quality which make it totally differ from other flicks. In short, this movie is "real" and sensational.

Let's not forget about the acting. Zach was lucky enough to have two of the very best young actors starring in his movie: Natalie Portman and Peter Sarsgaard. Especially Nat Portman, her Sam is so lovable that I just want to give her a big huge. Her smile lights up the screen. NP's character and acting are definitely the highlights of "Garden State".

8 out of 10. Very touching.

daveisit 29 December 2004

Fmovies: This was almost the perfect movie. The acting was great, the direction was great, the script was brilliant, and the location shoots were perfect. Probably the most amazing thing about this movie was the screen stealing show stopping performance of Natalie Portman. She showed this brilliance in "Leon" aka "The Professional", and once again amazed with her talent. It contains different humour to your usual American movie and was a needed hit in the movie circles of 2004.

My only problem was a little part of the story that seemed out of place and not needed. This is not a spoiler, it is his friends wealth and invention. They just seemed unnecessary to me. This is a minor complaint and I eagerly anticipate Zach's next work. He could quite possibly end out being more famous behind the camera than in front of it.

britni44 18 December 2004

I would give Garden State a 9 out of 10. The only reason I'm not giving it a perfect 10 is b/c it had a slow start. Besides that this movie overwhelmingly surprised me with its directing and acting. Natatlie Portman did an amazing job playing Sam. She really worked the part. Zach Braff's directing debut is stunning. I had never heard of Braff except for his character on the TV show Scrubs. He also did an excellent job acting. There were so many surprising elements thrown out during the movie. Braff just kept piling one thing on top of the next to make the story more interesting as it rolled on. I was very pleased with Garden State!!!!!!!!!11

serenity-12 10 December 2004

Garden State fmovies. Movies with guns, explosions, Barbie/ken romance... You know the drill. They can be good films, but it's rare I ever relate to those movies.

I *really* related to this movie - both the main character played by Zach, and the pure concept and analogy on display here. This film earns itself a place in my DVD collection upon release for the sheer fact it matches my 20-something experience to a huge degree, and all the feelings along the way.

Normally films such as this tend to end up becoming "coming of age" stories - this isn't. It's simply about living life, but not knowing why you are living it.

An excellent film on many levels - 10/10.

stensson 23 January 2005

Zach Braff has made it. Both script, directing and main acting, and everything is more than all right. This is a film without violence about people living ordinary extra-ordinary lives and it's much more interesting than extra-ordinary murders, which very, very few, even in the USA, encounter.

The "hero" has been going on tranquilizers for all his grown up-life and even before that. He's got no feelings left, not even for the death of his mother. Then he meets a girl, well acted indeed by Natalie Portman, who unlocks him slowly, saying the right things all the time without knowing it.

Hours after you've seen this, you realize that here was a crucial moment, this was a turning point and so on. The love story gets a little sentimental at the end, but still this is a film that lives long after you've seen it through.

JoshRoessler 24 February 2004

I really loved this movie. I mean, really. So it surprised me to come here and find it rated so low.

By no means is this a perfect movie. It can be slow or awkward from time to time and there are one or two moments that just don't work. But. By and large I was really impressed.

It's a great little story with just the right balance of comedy and drama, full of quirky characters and interesting performances. Ian Holm demands attention, as always, and Natalie Portman's Sam, while offputting at first, definitely grew on me as she grew into a real character.

But the real story here is Zack Braff. It should surprise no one who has ever watched Scrubs that his performance keeps the movie together; or that he is able to create a jokey, distant, somewhat sarcastic character who also elicits real empathy from the audience and manages to emanate deep wounds. What amazes me is the work he has done here as a first time writer/director.

First off, there is an actual narrative here with meaning and relevance. Too often, the big Hollywood movies will have a plot that resolves itself, but means nothing; on the flip side, independent movies almost seem to disdain plot for mood and thematic concerns. Braff is able to weave both together--a difficult task for a young writer. The dialogue is witty, plot situations intelligent and creative, and overall the writing is just--good.

As for his directing, there are a few odd choices. I'm still not sure I like one scene the main characters are screaming into a deep ravine and the camera sweeps away into said ravine. It just tossed me out of the movie a bit. I'm also not completely sure what to make of the movie's ending, which I won't go into further except to say that I felt it almost changed the focus of the movie up to that point and made it about something else. However, there are moments of absolutely beauty as well, here. The entire scene where Sam and Andrew talk in his friend's pool has some great shots, and Braff's comedic flair and timing are evident in his directing style, which still manages to pull back for the more dramatic and poignant moments.

I urge you to see this movie. It's not a "big" movie. It was never meant to be. But I have little doubt that, once it finds an audience, it will be remembered for years to come. Sort of a modern day Graduate with a more hopeful outlook on life.

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