A Bias Movie Review: One of the Best Movies of All Time, Garden State

I often forget why I love certain movies as much as I do, until of course I watch them. Today’s example would be Garden State. Not only is this movie brilliantly written and directed by its star, Zach Braff, but the soundtrack is outstanding as well. Now normally I pay little to no attention to movie soundtracks, so the fact I am an advocate for this particular ones, I assure you, means something. I’ve recently discovered that Zach Braff won an award for compilation for the movie’s soundtrack, whether you take that as a reason to listen or a reason to chastise it, the choice is yours. This movie introduced me to the music of the Shins and Frou Frou’s song, Let Go, which plays at the end.

I’ve been thinking about why I love this movie so much, and I think it breaks down to this: the characters are messed up people struggling to understand and cope with their lives. Now I realize that is the premise for most movies, but this movie doesn’t seek to change them or correct their mistakes in some crazy epiphany, what’s great about that is, that’s real life. No one has a montage or musical epiphany or has some wise person who swoops in and tell us how to properly live our lives. Only we have control and are responsible for our mistakes, and that’s the truth of Garden State.
These characters are trying to find their direction and an idea of Home. They are grave diggers who live with their parents or millionaires with money but nothing to do, they are two people who meet and start to fall in love but realize how little they know about each other or life. It’s about screwed up families (and we all have one of those, I know I do) and the distance that fills those families. It’s about people who lie, reuniting with old friends, making new ones and the crappy misfortunes of life. It’s about the possibility of healing with help from your friends, and moving forward.

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The Shins, Caring is Creepy from the Garden State Soundtrack


Zero 7's, In the Waiting Line also from the Garden State Soundtrack


The Garden State Trailer