If there is one movie that I do not hear people talk about enough, it would be “Garden State.” This movie quickly became one of my favorites when I saw it a few years ago and upon every rewatch since then, I have only enjoyed it more. If I had to have a comfort movie, then this film would win with its unconventional characters, setting, offbeat dialogue and genuinely sweet romance between the two main leads.
This indie film first premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2004. It was then bought and distributed by Fox Searchlight and Miramax for 5 million dollars, which was over double the movie’s budget of two million dollars.
The film centers around Andrew Largeman, who upon the death of his mother, returns to his hometown after being a struggling actor in L.A. for years. As the audience learns later, Largeman is extremely medicated due to his father, who is a psychiatrist. This makes him additionally apathetic on top of being lonesome and floating around trying to find his purpose in life. Largeman returns to his hometown and meets some of his old friends and goes to a party where he ends up smoking weed and ecstasy.
This scene at the party demonstrates very well how detached Largeman is, mostly only acting as a sort of spectator and observer which is shown through a montage and time lapse of everyone partying around him while he still remains dormant on a couch. The scene is also wonderfully scored to “In the Waiting Line” by Zero 7, adding to that feeling of floatiness and detachment.
A scene that I like and that reveals more of Largema’s character is later in the movie, when Sam and Largeman go to a small get together at Largeman’s friend Jesse’s mansion, where Largeman reveals to Sam and his friend Mark that he is the reason his mother was paralyzed and wheelchair bound. Largeman says that he felt frustrated as a child because he felt like he could never make his mother happy, which is a quote that really stood out to me because I could resonate with feelings of resentment of not being able to make someone happy as much as one may try, and I think that it gives good background and characterization to Andrew’s childhood frustration for the incident.
This scene explains the emotional side and physical side of Largeman’s numbness; on one hand explaining why he’s medicated, and on the other showing that he feels disconnected because he believes that most of his life was simply determined by freak accident. It contrasts to the rest of the movie up to this point as it is played more seriously and the framing is close and intimate once Largeman starts talking, really focusing on his delivery.
I also think that it’s interesting because Largeman technically is at fault for what happened to his mother, but he also was a child and it was an accident. The action had monumental consequences on the outcome of Largeman’s life. I think this idea of large portions of life being determined by chance really plays well into the film’s themes of taking initiative even if it is scary and not the easy option.
Another scene I enjoy is when Largeman and his friends meet Albert, who lives in a boat with his wife and child. Largeman asks why Albert lives like this and Albert tells him that it’s something that’s never been done before and unique and tells Andrew that the only thing that really matters, however, is that he is living with his family. I love the setting of the quarry and the landlocked boat in which Albert lives. It kind of threw me off the first time I watched it since it’s a departure from the mainly urban and suburban settings of the rest of the film. However, I have come to appreciate it, as the point of it is to be out of place, and to a more severe degree, slightly unappealing. The reason for this is because it demonstrates the point of doing something that’s never been done before. Since something that’s never been done before doesn’t look appealing or conventional, since it’s something that has never been seen or accepted before.
The scene also ends with a cool shot where Largeman, Sam, and Mark wear trashbags while standing on top of an old rusted crane and yelling into the quarry. For Largeman particularly, this also acts as him standing up to and recognising his emotions, which are represented by the quarry, and taking initiative of his life.
I think the acting is good for what the movie is, and I think that the vision for the characters was realized for the most part. The actors do sell the offbeat and comedic exchanges pretty well, and their exchanges are probably one of my favorite parts of the film.
I also enjoyed the cinematography a lot. The cinematography does a pretty good job of visual storytelling, one example being the start of the film where there is a shot of Largeman laying in his apartment back in L.A.. He lays in a stark white room with a white bed with no furniture, not even a nightstand. The landline which his father calls Largeman on to inform of his mother’s passing literally sits on the floor. The shot is somewhat comedic, but mostly shows the audience early on Andrew’s feelings of numbness and disconnect.
The cinematography also does a good job at visual comedy with many visually funny shots such as when Largeman sees a Medieval Times employee dressed in full knight armor in Mark’s house after waking up from the party or any shot with Largeman riding his motorcycle with a sidecar, which the director said was included purely because he found the sight humorous.
“Garden State” is a great movie, while it’s not groundbreaking or the most spectacular-looking film out there, it just really appeals to me in the form of the dialogue, soundtrack, unconventional settings and situations, and the cinematography.
