Good Luck Exploring the Infinite Abyss

One of the things I would like to do over the summer is highlight films that can help you become better filmmakers and storytellers.  Periodically, I will be sitting down to watch some films and take some notes and share some thoughts with you.  I will try my best to do so spoiler free (you know how I feel about spoilers) but I encourage you all to try and track down and watch as many of these films as you can.  Hopefully you will find them inspiring from a production/storytelling standpoint, but if not, at the very least maybe they will expand your horizons on what is possible in film.  Plus as aspiring filmmakers there is never a thing as watching too many movies.  Keep in mind that one, these will not be in depth reviews of the films; I would obviously try not to talk about a poor film.  The goal is to showcase a film that has learning potential, or encourages motivation to study existing work in an effort to motivate you to think differently about your own work.  Secondly, I may be discussing films that are rated R or feature mature content.  Naturally, I don't condone a majority of the content deemed worthy of a "R" rating.  Since many of you have discussed with me in some level the recent film "The Wolf of Wall Street," I'm using that as my barometer.  Now, onward!

For my first entry, I have chosen the film Garden State.

Garden State:  Written and Directed by Zach Braff
Starring: Zach Braff, Natalie Portman, Peter Sarsgaard, Ian Holm
Released: August 20th, 2004
Rated: R

First, let me tell you why I've selected it. 

I was driving today, and heard a song on the radio that typically does not get radio play.  I knew I recognized it but it took a few seconds to realize where.  It was from the movie Garden State.  Instantly I was reminded how much I enjoyed that film.  Then, as that instant passed, I remembered a lot of film students (in college) talk about how overrated it was, and how it was this dressed up pretentious film.  So I decided to re-watch it.  Interesting fact, they were wrong.

Garden State follows the life of Andrew Largeman (Zach Braff) who travels home for the first time in nine years, to attend his mothers funeral.  He has been living in L.A. working as a struggling actor, while taking copious amounts of prescription medication to try and level himself out.  Once home he reunites with "townie" friends, and meets a young girl Sam (Portman) who join him on his quest for self realization and fulfillment.

With in the first few minutes of the film we can see  a simplistic yet very effective shooting style.  There is an overwhelming sense of symmetry in his shots, frequently breaking the rule of thirds.   The reasoning behind this is to accentuate a sense of isolation and loneliness.  The settings typically re-enforce this, but they will get more complex as the story continues.

The main reason behind my selection of this film is because of its use of effective framing and limited camera movement.  We are so convinced that we need dramatic sweeping shots, or intricate camera work in order to effectively convey a mood or feeling, we forget that that's why we have actors.  Framing and camera motion should help accent emotion.  Not be the driving force behind it.

A lot of the shots in this movie are what are referred to as "compositional framing."  Compositional framing is a basic framing technique that brings focus to your subject while still having depth to your image.  Basically, this film has shots that we start to learn in TV Production 1.  In fact, with the exception of a few crane shots, steady-cam shots, and only ONE effect shot, this film could very well have been shot by TV1 veterans.  For this reason alone I encourage you all to watch it.  It also effectively uses music as a transitional piece between scenes.

And that's not a knock to writer, director, and lead actor Zach Braff.  You can tell very much that this was the film he set out to make.  The shooting style is simplistic, but its the story that makes you stay.

Braff does a fantastic job at creating characters that slowly unravel truths as the film goes on.  Whether it's little ones about Sam's helmet, or bigger ones that I won't spoil here, you're engaged from scene one.  

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"You gotta hear this one song.  It'll change your life I swear."

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" Are you alright?  Yeah you are, you're alive!"

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And talk about a quotable film.  There are so many gems of dialogue that jump off the screen, both heartfelt and inspiring that when you hear one, you feel it in your gut.

And that's what this story dishes out in spades.  Heart.  Honest and true.  It takes some pretty heavy concepts such as death, and the meaning of life, how we measure success and happiness, and handles them with respect.  It has its moments of light-heartedness too, but just when things start to teeter towards silly, we are usually given another emotional blow.  What I mean to say, is that the tone here is very evenly balanced and the pacing is almost perfect (the last 10 minutes seem a bit rushed).  Genuine performances help here, with Braff as Andrew portraying both emotionally hollow and charmingly witty, but it's Portman who steals the show as Sam.  A quirky but instantly lovable companion who acts as a therapist of sorts.  She is flawed and not afraid to show it.

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"That's life.  If nothing else, it's life.  It's real, and sometimes it [expletive] hurts, but it's sort of all we have."

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I really hope you all do try and see this film.  It hits your heart in all the right places, and is a great example of what can be done with simple, yet well thought out framing techniques.  It's also a great example of an "indie" film, that really gave me a "I can write and shoot a movie like that" attitude.  It made me want to make films just like it, and I hope it does for you too. 

If you do watch, or have seen it in the past, get a discussion going in the comments.  I'd love to hear your thoughts or answer your questions on story elements or shooting techniques.  Side note, this movie has one of the best soundtracks to come along.  Coldplay, The Shins, Nick Drake, Iron & Wine and more, every song here fits the tone of the films so well.  Give it a listen.