Garden State

JonPorobil · Post by **JonPorobil** » Sun Jan 02, 2005 4:21 pm

Vanilla Sky is one of my favorite movies, actually. Chacun à son gout.

nicegeoff · Post by **nicegeoff** » Mon Jan 03, 2005 1:19 am

mkilly wrote:Yeah, hmm. Take note that McCartney wrote the song for the film. It's a remake of a Spanish film, "Abre los ojos," which I found very excellent. Really I found Vanilla Sky pretty enjoyable too. The director of "Abre," Alejandro Amenabar, also directed Los otres/The Others.

Umm...Everyone should also 'take note' that Tom Cruise starred in "Born on the 4th of July", which was directed by Oliver Stone. Oliver Stone also directed the film "Any Given Sunday", featured LL Cool J, who wrote the song, "Mama Said Knock You Out!!". Case closed!!!

the Jazz · Post by **the Jazz** » Mon Jan 03, 2005 2:19 am

nicegeoff wrote:I mean, there was some sort of climax during the end of it and all of a sudden "Good Vibrations" came on and totally took me out of the movie.

Are you serious? That was hilarious! That and the part where he uses the "can we still be friends" one... It's the same idea behind using that very tranquil classical piece (the name of which escapes me) in Platoon when they're in the helicopter blowing the shit out of everything. Except it wasn't hilarious in Platoon. But ironic as hell. In hollywood lingo it's called scoring against film (or picture, or scene, whatever).

JonPorobil · Post by **JonPorobil** » Mon Jan 03, 2005 11:01 pm

Like the ending to Dr. Strangelove. "We'll Meet Again" over the world esploding up.

nicegeoff · Post by **nicegeoff** » Tue Jan 04, 2005 12:15 pm

the Jazz wrote:
nicegeoff wrote:I mean, there was some sort of climax during the end of it and all of a sudden "Good Vibrations" came on and totally took me out of the movie.
Are you serious? That was hilarious! That and the part where he uses the "can we still be friends" one... It's the same idea behind using that very tranquil classical piece (the name of which escapes me) in Platoon when they're in the helicopter blowing the shit out of everything. Except it wasn't hilarious in Platoon. But ironic as hell. In hollywood lingo it's called scoring against film (or picture, or scene, whatever).

I am no way against scoring against film, for it can be done very well (as generic noted in 'dr. strangelove'), or poorly (as in 'vanilla sky')...But I was also trying to make a point that I'm too aware of Crowe's own personality for the use of 'Good Vibrations' to be a lubricating musical device...But then again, that is just me.

fodroy · Post by **fodroy** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 3:38 pm

amazing movie. A+. i got it as a christmas gift and i finally watched it this sunday (twice). i thought it was a very well written, acted, etc....movie. i absolutely loved andrew and sam. i could see myself not liking andrew if he was played by someone else. i thought zack braff did an awesome job. i even began to like sarsgaards character which i didn't think could happen when the movie started.

and i agree that the part where they shamelessly plug the shins is just bad. that's my only gripe with the movie. i like the shins and all, but that was nothing but an advertisement.

HeuristicsInc · Post by **HeuristicsInc** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 3:41 pm

yeah, now that you remind me, that part seemed very forced. silly.
i suppose it could have worked ok if they handled it differently.
-bill

Eric Y. · Post by **Eric Y.** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 5:19 pm

saw this movie yesterday. very funny but also very insightful. a lot of times i found myself totally relating to the main character dude (whose name i can't remember right now). like, i rarely see anybody i went to high school with, but i've had plenty of situations where i am hanging out with somebody i used to know, but i've moved on in my life since that time, and i find i really have nothing in common with this person anymore, but i can't say anything about it because it'd be awkward. well i guess that's all kind of stating the obvious, because probably that's one of the main points of the movie. blah. anyway i liked it a bunch.

reve · Post by **reve** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 6:53 am

nicegeoff wrote:i was reminded of the scene in "vanilla sky" where tom cruise is looking for music to play in his car and he's like, "what do you want to listen to...I got some...uh...RADIOHEAD?"

1. Actually, the only band I remember TC name-dropping in Vanilla Sky is the far more obscure (than the shins) Barcelona. Who rocked, albeit briefly.

2. I was kind of surprised by the Shins reference none the less, though. About a year or two ago I really tried to get into the Shins... and failed.

3. I can't see how this movie (Garden State) could have possibly held the attention of anyone outside the 17-25 age range. Were I still 23, I would have been saying "oh my god, it's my life, only more beautiful." I would undoubtedly have wept. Now, I'm just like "dude, suck it up get over yourself."

Such is the debilitating cruelity of age.

fodroy · Post by **fodroy** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 12:58 pm

reve wrote:3. I can't see how this movie (Garden State) could have possibly held the attention of anyone outside the 17-25 age range. Were I still 23, I would have been saying "oh my god, it's my life, only more beautiful." I would undoubtedly have wept. Now, I'm just like "dude, suck it up get over yourself."

Such is the debilitating cruelity of age.

i actually thought about that. i love this movie now. it's the perfect movie for this point in my life. but will i still love it when i'm 30 years old and i've grown past this part of my life? i hope i can still see it as a beautiful story in the least.

mkilly · Post by **mkilly** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 1:03 pm

reve wrote:I can't see how this movie (Garden State) could have possibly held the attention of anyone outside the 17-25 age range. Were I still 23, I would have been saying "oh my god, it's my life, only more beautiful." I would undoubtedly have wept. Now, I'm just like "dude, suck it up get over yourself."

Such is the debilitating cruelity of age.

that's funny, because JB gave it an A-, and Zach Braff hisself is 29 years old.

erik · Post by **erik** » Sun Jan 16, 2005 2:45 pm

I'm not at all in the 17-25 age bracket, and I really liked this film (but I don't go to the movies to feel validated by seeing a more beautified version of my own life on the big screen).

Which characters needed to "suck it up" and "get over themselves", and why?

reve · Post by **reve** » Mon Jan 17, 2005 2:13 am

15-16 puzzle wrote: I don't go to the movies to feel validated by seeing a more beautified version of my own life on the big screen (snip) Which characters needed to "suck it up" and "get over themselves", and why?

I don't think anyone does, and if that's what you honestly thought I inferred, I didn't express my point clearly.

My point is that for us to care about a narrative piece of fiction, we need to either a) identify on some level with the characters, b) find the characters to be so compelling that we care about what's happening to them, or c) get sucked in by an intriguing plot.*

Watching Garden State, I assume Braff's intention was to follow path A. Something like Royal Tannenbaums would be a path B film, whereas Patriot Games would be a path C film. But I think Braff intended the audience to identify with Largeman. And I think a few years ago, he would have succeeded in my case -- I would have seen myself up there on the screen. That's the crux of what I was attempting to express. As a romantic (as in romanticism) film, life and the world life plays itself out in are portrayed in a more expressive, beautified, and idealized fashion.

This is what I meant by beautiful. Not that Zach's got the looks-drop on me.

15-16 puzzle wrote:Which characters needed to "suck it up" and "get over themselves", and why?

I was referring to Zach. And by the end of the movie, I think he does -- at least in a sense. However, watching the non-process he went through to achieve this state of knowing was not particularly entertaining for me. In fact, I would characterize it as somewhat annoying. Hence my discontent with the film.

Zach wants to be an artist, but has to suffer through a job where he gets (we presume) regularly humiliated. But come on, Zach. You're not dumb. You can get a decent fucking job where people don't make fun of your clothes while harping on you to get them bread as your manager tells you you're worthless.

It should take Zach maybe a month before he says "fuck, I gotta get outta here." But we're given the impression he's stuck in this empty life (see: his interior decorating).

Poor Zach! He's so alienated that he's reduced to inaction. I find that crushingly lame. It's like, whoah, Zack, take stock of your surroundings and do something, dude.

So Zach is suffering from a tremendous case of alienation and vague psychological malaise in his 20s. The meaning of life is elusive for Zach, who's had a life of privilage but suffered from an emotional disconnection from his parents, and some weird guilt-related issues.

Most people have been there, right? But most people get over it, which is why Zach bothers me.

But Zach's been heavily medicated, you say.

Yeah, on drugs perscribed by his Dad, who lives on the other side of teh country and who Zach hasn't seen in what, seven years? Zach wants to go off his meds. This is probably good for Zach. But the fact that Zach hadn't seen the guy who wrote out the perscription in seven years and just kept popping the pills the whole time makes the situatin (and in turn Zach himself) fucking lame. Again.

Or, to condence the argument, Zach's got to suck it up and get over himself. Not the best choice of words, I realize.

mkilly wrote:that's funny, because JB gave it an A-, and Zach Braff hisself is 29 years old.

The film was reccomended to us by my gf's friend, who's like, 32, telling us how much she related to the film. (And admittedly, the process of wondering how and why she related to the film served to harden my own reaction.) My reaction was like, sheesh, if I can't relate to this any more at my age, how could someone five years older?! But obviously she did, as did many people -- it was a popular film.

I know this because it's on sale at Target, with a sign that says "Best Seller" over it.

* You can come up with others, like d) expressionistic mood piece, or e) visual effects wank off, but A-C covers most movies. A film that at its core is an E film generally makes a passing attempt at encorporating C and B (in a subplot) elements.

erik · Post by **erik** » Mon Jan 17, 2005 2:35 am

ahhhh, I think I was confused because I normally use "get over yourself" as a rejoinder for people who think they are more important than they actually are, not for people who need to start doing something with their lives.

HeuristicsInc · Post by **HeuristicsInc** » Mon Jan 17, 2005 9:01 am

reve wrote:It's like, whoah, Zack, take stock of your surroundings and do something, dude.

Real clinical depression pretty much makes it almost impossible to do this.
I thought we discussed this before... he's probably not able to do anything about it in the beginning of the movie.
-bill

the Jazz · Post by **the Jazz** » Mon Mar 14, 2005 12:10 am

So I finally saw this and it was very good. Not the awesomest movie ever, but funny at many parts and I enjoyed it thoroughly. Good characters. And any movie with Natalie Portman in it is good enough for me.

Eric Y. · Post by **Eric Y.** » Mon Mar 14, 2005 12:58 am

"very good", "not the awesomest movie ever", "funny", "enjoyed it thoroughly", "natalie portman".

that sums up how i feel about this movie too.

Lyricburglar · Post by **Lyricburglar** » Sat Jan 21, 2006 4:49 pm

tviyh wrote:"very good", "not the awesomest movie ever", "funny", "enjoyed it thoroughly", "natalie portman".

that sums up how i feel about this movie too.

Yep - saw this last night - and pretty much ditto to TVIYH and The Jazz for me.

Except for maybe "enjoyed it thoroughly" - I'd downgrade to "enjoyed thoroughly in parts". I liked the bit about the bloke in the boat in the hole.

Poor June · Post by **Poor June** » Sun Jan 22, 2006 9:14 am

i just saw this movie a couple months ago... must admit... i thought it was pretty awful...