Disenchanted Youth

I saw Garden State, a movie about 20-somethings struggling to find their equilibrium, last night and thoroughly enjoyed it (I'm not much of a critic, though, so don't blame me if you watch it on my recommendation and hate it). I thought the characters, especially those played by Zach Braff and Natalie Portman, were very engaging and believably flawed. I fully intend to rent it and watch it again with my beloved when it comes out on DVD.

But ... I couldn't relate to anyone in the movie. Not because I'm too old (I hope) but because I never went through that disenchanted phase that seems to be de rigueur in Hollywood. In my early thirties, after my marriage imploded, yes, but I had a child then, and a mortgage, and not a lot of time for introspection and railing against harsh fate.

My brother, in his 20's, quit his job and joined a commune for a few years. I, on the other hand, along with most of my friends, went to university, got a job, and got married (usually within a year of graduation). We bought apartments, then townhouses, then houses, then a dog or two, hosted dinner parties, had kids, bought a second family car ... got along with our parents and siblings for the most part, happily came home for Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, birthdays ...

Still, I can see why there's not a lot of that at the movies. It makes for pretty dull entertainment.