AT THE MOVIES WITH KASEY BUTCHER
I am growing up in a world in which there is a different magic pill for any ailment or problem I may have. If I’m sad, I could be prescribed Prozac. If I can’t concentrate, my doctor could give me Ritalin. For any sort of anxiety, I could be given Zoloft (the one with the cute little depressed bubble). It is remarkable and somewhat incomprehensible how many health professionals seem to think that if a kid isn’t feeling 100 percent normal, a little white capsule will fix everything. My generation is turning into a “quick fix” or “pill popping” generation, but that doesn’t seem to be helping anything. Just ask Zach Braff.
Braff, best known for his role on NBC’s Scrubs, wrote, directed, and starred in the recent movie Garden State, in which he addresses the issue of medicine vs. figuring things out for oneself. In the movie Braff plays Andrew Largeman, a young man returning home to New Jersey (hence the title) after nine years for his mother’s funeral. While at home, Largeman catches up with his friends from high school (none of whom have done much since), meets Sam (Natalie Portman, Cold Mountain), a quirky optimistic epileptic, and is forced to confront his father/psychiatrist about the obscene amount of medicine he has been taking since he was a pre-teen. Largeman, who has lived in California over the past decade, leaves his meds behind when he returns home, making his short stay in New Jersey the first time he hasn’t had drugs in his system for as long as he can remember. He finds this a very good feeling. He begins to awaken from the emotional numbness that his prescriptions have caused. As his relationship with Sam grows during Largeman’s visit, he decides not to go back on his medications. He decides that he wants, for once, to figure things out for himself. He has a messy past to sort through, but he decides that he is finally prepared to do so.
Garden State is a very good, and very aesthetically interesting film. It includes some of the most unique images I have seen since “Eternal Sunshine…” Braff definitely has talent and potential for future success as a filmmaker. This movie is dominated by colors, music, and manipulation of time. Some scenes are shown more quickly or slowly than the rest of the film, which gives the audience a sense of what Largeman is experiencing.
The acting is also pretty good. Braff has a unique ability to bring humor to sad subject matter. Portman always brings charm to whatever she does and this is no different.
The problem with this movie, however, is that it is missing something. When the credits rolled, the movie felt empty. Although the characters are good and the story is good, there is something missing. The characters and the story are not fully developed and so the movie misses the mark on any deep felt viewer reaction to the ending. This is Braff’s first movie; I’ll give him that. Hopefully the next one will have a spectacular story to match the spectacular imagery.
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