Garden State tackles profundities of life teaches lesson on true love

Every once in a while, a movie comes along that makes viewers deeply contemplate life. It makes them re-evaluate their lives, and most of the time it makes them feel lazy or self-involved. When this happens, the true test of the movie is whether it motivates anyone to do anything - to change. "Garden State" is exactly that movie. The big screen directorial debut of Zach Braff of NBC's "Scrubs" is about Andrew Largeman, "Large" to his friends. After being away from home since he was 16, Large comes home to New Jersey nine years later for his mother's funeral. He has been diagnosed as clinically depressed by his psychiatrist-father (Ian Holm), and for as long as he can remember, he has felt "numb." On this trip home, he leaves his antidepressants in California. Large is surrounded by an ocean of interesting characters, each one supremely out of the ordinary, but so likable that their eccentricities are overlooked. His best friend Mark (Peter Sarsgaard) is a gravedigger. He runs into him at - you guessed it - his (Largeman's) mother's funeral. Mark invites him into the New Jersey of their younger days, taking him to parties to play spin-the-bottle and smoke pot. With this escape, Large avoids his father, with whom he has had a tumultuous relationship since he was a young boy. Then he meets Sam (Natalie Portman). A pathological liar and hamster collector, she is the height of strange characters. "Large" finds solace in her, and together they attempt to exorcise the ghosts of his past. "Garden State" is beautiful. Zach Braff has a director's eye and sees the film making process as an art. With his symmetrical design and vivid color choices, Braff relays the story on an entirely different level than just the script and the acting. Probably the best thing about this film, however, is the soundtrack. The song featured in the trailer, "Let Go" by Frou Frou, also appears in the film. This song itself is powerful enough to make eyes swell up, but with the combination of movie and song, many will be left defenseless. The soundtrack is a powerhouse with songs from Coldplay, Simon and Garfunkel, Nick Drake and The Shins. All movie lovers should see this film. It is reminiscent of last year's "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," leaving one with the feeling that love is the most important thing about life, and no matter the sacrifices that have to be made, one must always relish love and hold onto it if one is lucky enough to find it. Grade: A