Garden State

Whodafunkit? An actor best known for a (top) sit-com, writing and directing (and starring in) something so Scrubs star Zach Braff takes the lead role as Andrew "Large" Largeman, an actor constantly in a lithium induced coma, who returns home to Jersey when his mother dies, so far, so production line indie...

and it's like that for the first 25 minutes, and it's watchable- Braff, Peter Sarsgaard and Ian Holm hold the screen- but in the 25th minute it all changes, the film in a moment becomes special- I am of course talking about the scene Natalie Portman enters, the magic that Portman brings to this movie is out of this world- you instantly fall in love with her character, the compulsive liar Sam.

Portman completely makes the movie, why she wasn't nominated for a Best Actress Oscar is bewildering, to be fair this film doesn't feature the greatest quality of writing that ever existed , sometimes just feeling like a series of scenes, but Portman and the other performers make it worthwhile, Sarsgaard as Braff's old best friend also stands out in a fine ensemble.

This truly is a great film (the shortcomings are only nitpicking) and If your a fan of Ms. Portman, you'll love this so much, everybody else I'll like it too.

*****