"Garden State" - written, directed, et al., by Zach Braff.
Good cinematic pace. To me, it's the perfect Fall film, perhaps because it's a text about transitions, change, and movement.
"Garden State" features too much of Braff, but it also features much else of significance.
An anthropomorphized New Jersey serves as actively as any other character in this film. It is, quite possibly, the making of the film.
"Garden State" was first realeased in select cities in the summer of 2004 and since it was not playing in my city of residence at that point, I went on a trip to Minneapolis (yes, "Garden State" is that good), where it and other indie titles were playing. That trip, was not a waste of time. I had just come back from my beloved Seattle and I seriously doubted I would have as good a time anywhere else, but I did. Largely due to the indie films I managed to see in one short visit.
True, I also saw my Minneapolis-residing person at that point, but I embarked on the trip primarily to view new, Sundance-type films. "We Don't Live Here Anymore" was the other film I intended to view [and did] while in MN.
One of the things time affords us is the ability to access older films with a measure of ease. This existentialism-informed film will not disappoint and Braff's ubiquitous presence is rendered tolerable thanks to a superior Natalie Portman and a talented supporting cast. And then there's the Garden State itself, Jersey....
graph per imdb
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