In Other News
Aug. 30th, 2004 12:58 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
liptonrm_backupWhile eating lunch out today I decided to use the bathroom, only to be bombarded with advertisements hanging in the stalls. WTF?! As a recent college student I am used to bathroom stalls that have all sorts of stuff posted to and written on them, but companies are now actually paying to advertise in the bathroom? Talk about a captive audience.
Speaking of college, I realized this morning as I was hearing about my coworker's kids going back to school, that this will be the first fall since I was three years old (not counting, however, my time in TX) where I will not be going back to school. It's different and interesting and thank goodness that I will never have to relive high school ever again (though grad school still sounds mahvelous;-).
I did go scrape up enough money to go see Garden State on Saturday (largely thanks to prodding provided by![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
hjcallipygian) and have to say, I enjoyed it muchly.
What can I say about this movie? The plot is so intricate and interconnected and yet so seemingly mundane all at the same time that I have no idea where to begin. It's a good movie, a really good movie. It's affecting and sweet and speaks to me, perhaps most strongly because it deals with the vagaries of home and family and finding a place for yourself in the world.
The movie begins almost dreamlike, we are given images of Andrew (Zach Braff) just floating through his life, not connecting or being connected. His apartment is white and barren and his medicine cabinet is full of prescription drugs. Even when he is notified about his mother's death he can't seem to actually feel anything about it.
And that is the tragedy of his life. I found it fascinating how his father (Ian Holm), in a desperate attempt to make his son happy and recreate a 'perfect' family after devestating tragedy during Andrew's childhood, used medication as a stop-gap to healing.
This movie wants to say something, and it does while it remains uniformly entertaining. The random hillarity of life is used to marvelous effect, whether it's a blind woman's guide dog humping your leg in the doctor's waiting room, or a mother's gleefully embarrassing a daughter by showing old family videos or deep breakfast conversations about eating Lucky Charms. The balance between hilarity and despair is carefully maintained and the film is made even more poignant because of it.
The acting is good across the board with Natalie Portman standing out brilliantly in a role that easily could have gone over the top in the hands of a lesser performer. Zack Braff performs well, however his true triumph in this movie is the direction he gave. This was his first feature film and it is rare to see a work so sure and accomplished in a novice director. It was most impressive.
I enjoyed Garden State more then I can express. It is wonderful and soft, a tale that moves through dreams and reality to express the complexity of life and living. It's simply wonderful
Speaking of college, I realized this morning as I was hearing about my coworker's kids going back to school, that this will be the first fall since I was three years old (not counting, however, my time in TX) where I will not be going back to school. It's different and interesting and thank goodness that I will never have to relive high school ever again (though grad school still sounds mahvelous;-).
I did go scrape up enough money to go see Garden State on Saturday (largely thanks to prodding provided by
hjcallipygian) and have to say, I enjoyed it muchly.What can I say about this movie? The plot is so intricate and interconnected and yet so seemingly mundane all at the same time that I have no idea where to begin. It's a good movie, a really good movie. It's affecting and sweet and speaks to me, perhaps most strongly because it deals with the vagaries of home and family and finding a place for yourself in the world.
The movie begins almost dreamlike, we are given images of Andrew (Zach Braff) just floating through his life, not connecting or being connected. His apartment is white and barren and his medicine cabinet is full of prescription drugs. Even when he is notified about his mother's death he can't seem to actually feel anything about it.
And that is the tragedy of his life. I found it fascinating how his father (Ian Holm), in a desperate attempt to make his son happy and recreate a 'perfect' family after devestating tragedy during Andrew's childhood, used medication as a stop-gap to healing.
This movie wants to say something, and it does while it remains uniformly entertaining. The random hillarity of life is used to marvelous effect, whether it's a blind woman's guide dog humping your leg in the doctor's waiting room, or a mother's gleefully embarrassing a daughter by showing old family videos or deep breakfast conversations about eating Lucky Charms. The balance between hilarity and despair is carefully maintained and the film is made even more poignant because of it.
The acting is good across the board with Natalie Portman standing out brilliantly in a role that easily could have gone over the top in the hands of a lesser performer. Zack Braff performs well, however his true triumph in this movie is the direction he gave. This was his first feature film and it is rare to see a work so sure and accomplished in a novice director. It was most impressive.
I enjoyed Garden State more then I can express. It is wonderful and soft, a tale that moves through dreams and reality to express the complexity of life and living. It's simply wonderful
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2004-08-30 12:51 pm (UTC)Cool for you : - D
I've still got three years left, but luckily I love it (or at least I hope I will, I'm starting at a new place)
no subject
Date: 2004-08-31 01:27 pm (UTC)Good luck at the new school!
no subject
Date: 2004-08-31 01:31 pm (UTC)I can hardly wait to get started now.
no subject
Date: 2004-08-30 02:44 pm (UTC)You seemed to get the exact same thing out of it that I did. I'm really glad you enjoyed it, especially after I pestered you about it so much. =P
My personal favorite line in the movie was the one about families just being a group of people who all miss the same idea of "home". What about you?
no subject
Date: 2004-08-31 01:32 pm (UTC)*snicker* Okay, you weren't quite that bad;-).
The ideas they discussed about home were interesting and true on some fascinating levels and something I definitely have to think about some more. The line that I can't shake, however, is Sam's line about needing to laugh at life in order to survive it. I don't know whether it's my favorite line, but it's certainly the one I can't forget.
I think it's going to take me a while to really digest the ideas of Garden State.
no subject
Date: 2004-08-30 03:22 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-31 01:33 pm (UTC)I highly recommend it, however.
no subject
Date: 2004-08-31 10:46 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-08-31 01:35 pm (UTC)*is baffled*