So I saw Garden State today.

Wow.

Before I start, here's the required spoiler warning:

**POTENTIAL SPOILERS** Though there aren't really anything that are spoilers anyways.

And here's a short summary from Cinema Montreal.

When Andrew Largeman (Zach Braff) returns to his hometown for his mother's funeral, he reconnects with old friends and - since he's gone off his depression medication - himself. A chance meeting with Sam (Natalie Portman), who also suffering from various maladies, opens his world to the possibility of rekindling emotional attachments, confronting his psychologist father, and perhaps beginning a new life.

I had been waiting for this movie for about 2 1/2 weeks now. I first gained interest in it after seeing a clip during an interview with Natalie Portman on Conan. The clip was during one of the early scenes where Andrew meets Sam, just out of the blue. There was a brief exchange between the two, and I couldn't help but notice the sort of chemistry between them, not to mention the smart dialogue between the two. That was when I started looking up info on the movie.
Reviews for it across the board, nearly all positive. I was hyped. I was stoked.

Today came, and I saw the movie, and Garden State definitely lived up to the hype.

Zach Braff's directorial debut is an amazingly emotional comedy. Visually alone, the movie looks great. Depending on the moment, the colour scheme ranged anywhere from drab and monotone during the various scenes showing Andrew's negative state of mind, to soft and lush during the quiet, sentimental moments between him and his friends. The lighting definitely set the mood, dark and light, shadows, all used with creativity and imagination.

Script-wise, the story and the dialogue is very smartly written, and far from sappy and cheesy. They talk... like we talk. It doesn't feel forced, which is a definite plus for a movie like this. Not to mention the actual performances between the actors. Like I mentioned earlier, there is definite chemistry between them, not only Portman and Braff, but the entire cast. Like a well played game of Tetris, it all fits.

Lastly, the soundtrack. I wasn't sure what to expect, given the sort of music in movies like this. But once again, it was a surprise for me. Acoustic and mellow rock take the majority here when it comes to the music, and it's all very fitting. Listen to the lyrics every once in a while, and you'll understand exactly why I'm saying this.

As a whole, the movie is a funny, sometimes sad, and overall very emotional (while not melodramatic) ride that'll leave you with a lump in your throat. I laughed out loud more than once, I damn near cried, and I absolutely will watch this movie again.

Summary:
5/5, an amazing directorial debut from Zach Braff, who knows just what to say to get a reaction out of you. Go see it!