The 50 Day Movie Challenge asks one question every day, to be answered by a few paragraphs and a clip, if possible. Click here to see all 50 questions in a nice and organized list. It’s such a pretty list.
TODAY: What is your favorite movie?
Whenever I tell someone that I’m interested in making movies or that I’m “kind of a movie buff,” they almost invariably ask me to name my favorite film. For the longest time I would randomly say whatever film came to my head that sounded cool or that fit the social scenario I was in. If I were among classmates from film school I would say that Dr. Strangelove was my favorite film in order to impress them, or if I were at a bar with people who quoted Old School like it were god’s gift to cinema I would say that The Princess Bride was my favorite film so I could feel superior to them. But somewhere in the journey that is life I decided to settle down and actually pick a favorite film. Garden State is that film.
Having just dealt with tragedy in my life and feelings of estrangement from my family I was able to connect with the film in a profound way. The selection of music and the overall mood “spoke to me,” to use a cliche. I was already a fan of Zach Braff from Scrubs and to see him take on a more serious role was refreshing. Not only that, but this film marked the birth of the “manic pixie dreamgirl” that we’ve come to roll our eyes at.
Here’s a trailer with great music and a pretty accurate feel of what the movie is like.
Zach Braff is a true artist. He can do
comedy and serious roles, and not every actor can do that. Anyway, the movie is great! I can totally
relate to it. Growing up as a middle child was so hard then. I used to get confused
with a lot of things, and I ended up feeling empty and depressed. I used to go out and drown myself in the
company of friends. And being with them made me realize that I was wrong with
everything. There are other people who had bigger problems than mine. And one
day, I realized that my parents were always so great to me.
Haven’t seen Zach Braff in a whole lot other than Scrubs, this film and his brief cameo in Arrested Development as the creator of the “Girls With Low Self Esteem” videos. I quite like what he does, and am pretty much on board if he’s involved. Haven’t really seen him in much these days, though.
Agreed on the film and being relatable. Seems like there’s something for everyone to latch onto with it, which is what makes it my favorite.