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Broken Flowers (2005)
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Reviews Counted:181
Fresh:157
Rotten:24
Average Rating:7.5/10
Consensus: Bill Murray's subtle and understated style complements director Jim Jarmusch's minimalist storytelling in this quirky, but deadpan comedy.
Rated: R [See Full Rating] for language, some graphic nudity and brief drug use
Runtime: 1 hr 46 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:Aug 5, 2005 Limited
Box Office: $13,578,173
Synopsis: With BROKEN FLOWERS, staunchly independent filmmaker Jim Jarmusch delivers one of his most pleasing, accessible pictures. Winner of the 2005 Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival, the film tells... With BROKEN FLOWERS, staunchly independent filmmaker Jim Jarmusch delivers one of his most pleasing, accessible pictures. Winner of the 2005 Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival, the film tells the story of Don Johnston (Bill Murray), a man overflowing with wealth but void of emotion. On the day that his most recent girlfriend (Julie Delpy) has given up on him for good, he learns, through an anonymous letter, that he might be the father of a 19-year-old boy. Spurned into action by his wannabe private eye neighbor, Winston (Jeffrey Wright), Don sets off on a personal journey to visit the former partners who may or may not have mothered his child. They include the flighty Laura (Sharon Stone), whose daughter Lolita (Alexis Dziena) certainly lives up to her name; the uptight Dora (Frances Conroy), who has settled into a sterile life with her chipper husband, Ron (Christopher McDonald); the strangely distant Carmen (Jessica Lange), who makes a living as an "animal communicator;" and, finally, Penny (Tilda Swinton), a hard-edged biker who is the least happiest to see Don. Each confrontation leaves Don feeling more lost than the last, spinning him into an even greater state of apathetic confusion. In typical Jarmusch fashion, he wrote the script for BROKEN FLOWERS with his casting firmly in mind: only Murray could play this role. The result showcases Murray's brilliance as a less-is-more presence. Jarmusch also gives some of Hollywood's most talented female actresses roles they can relish. A hundred percent Jarmusch, BROKEN FLOWERS is a wry, tender, and bittersweet portrait of a man who is drifting aimlessly through life. [More]
Starring: Bill Murray, Jeffrey Wright, Sharon Stone, Tilda Swinton
Starring: Bill Murray, Jeffrey Wright, Sharon Stone, Tilda Swinton, Julie Delpy, Jessica Lange
Director: Jim Jarmusch
Director: Jim Jarmusch
Screenwriter: Jim Jarmusch
Producer: Jon Kilik, Stacey E. Smith, Jim Jarmusch
Studio: Focus Features
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Reviews for Broken Flowers
It's too cold and too uninterested in talk in general and the stories people tell themselves about their romantic lives in particular to do its premise justice.
Jarmusch is the director of... discursive movies long on character and short on plot.
Broken Flowers is all of a piece; it’s maliciously observed, and it has a neat formal style. But it’s an art object without the energy or courage to be a work of art.
Jarmusch and Murray can mix fine mood martinis, yet their film is all vapors and hints, murmurs and ricochets ... these flowers wilt before they can break.
It's many things: a terrific performance piece for a handful of good actors, an engaging metaphor and a so-so piece of storytelling.
Smart and moody, but the lack of a human connection to the story's main character left me wanting.
The ending is sublime, a set piece that almost makes up for the overwhelming slightness of it all.
Jarmusch, himself approaching middle age, has Don looking back with Zen fortitude and deadpan sobriety, but what's missing from the film is sensitivity.
Jarmusch Fails Murray by Failing to Offer Visual Poetry to an Empty Vaccum of Pathetic Despair
"Broken Flowers" is layered with sophisticated symbolism, amusing wordplay and a strong cast, yet it remains an unsatisfying film.
Despite occupying nearly every scene, Bill Murray is a virtual non-presence in Jim Jarmusch’s latest puzzler.
As Bill Murray tells a young drifter after buying the kid a sandwich, 'All there is, is this. The present. That's it.' If Jim Jarmusch knows what that is, he's not telling.
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