Boobirt Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Billie Morin This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Aneesa Wardle The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Karl Self I just rewatched Down By Law and Stranger Than Paradise, which are simply awesome movies. Fast forward twenty years on, and Jim Jarmusch came up with Broken Flowers, which feels like it was directed by the artistically-inclined nephew of the owner of the movie studio. Jarmusch, bless him, apparently wanted to do another "Lost In Translation"-type flick with Bill Murray. In "Lost In Translation", the unlikely pair of average shmoe Murray and American sweetheart Scarlett Johansson are stranded in a faceless hotel and gradually form an emotional bond. In Broken Flowers, average shmoe Murray revisits his girlfriends from 20 years ago, and their sultry daughters and receptionists, all of which turn out to be foxes. Quite a challenge to make us believe that twenty years ago, Murray set their little hearts on fire, stayed with them for a few short months, sodded off and moved on to the next girlfriend, dropped off the horizon, and now they're like "oh, you're back, how nice, do come in". How is this amazing feat mastered? Brilliantly, by Murray not getting a word out. It's a bit like "act like you don't care, this will make the girl try anything to get your attention". And he's giving each of them a bouquet of pink flowers. Oh man, this is bad.Jarmusch apparently wanted to do a movie with Murray, didn't have a script, and this was exacerbated by the fact he had the most beautiful actresses in the world at his beck and call.And typically for the wicked ways of the movie industry, this cinematic trainwreck garnered a Palme d'Or at Cannes. Kudos, they managed to give it to Jarmusch for the one terrible movie he made.

pascaloetterli I recently watched "Night on Earth" by Director Jim Jarmusch. Besides being a typical Arthaus movie, I didn't know, what to write about it and decided to give it a rewatch. "Broken Flowers" made it easier for me and I really liked it. Bill Murray is perfect in the role of a notorious womanizer trying to find out which one of his former partners wrote him a letter that she had a son with him. He's going for a search in the whole country, which makes this movie looking like a different kind of roadmovie. The women are played by great actresses such as Delpy, Lange, Stone, Conroy and Sevigny. The story is very straightforward, it all comes down to the interaction between Don and the women. It's at once comedy and drama, but nothing emotionally strong. To me it had something of a roadmovie and had also that "Up in the Air" travelling feeling. It's a fine film with some great moments but likewise it was not outstanding either. Jim Jarmusch is loved by the female audience and this movies shows why: he understands them well and his female characters are interesting. He's like the American Almodovar. You must like this kind of movie-making and most importantly: you must like Bill Murray.

richm444-214-240741 I really thoroughly enjoyed this movie.This does not have a big budget with special effects and explosions. This also does not have the banal pedestrian predictable plot where Arnold or Sly Stallone take on the evil antagonist in the form of a big ugly alien or other daunting character whereby our heroes invariably emerge victorious at the end of the production despite insurmountable odds having dodged death and defeat throughout. I found the movie very interesting and intriguing, totally unpredictable. It begins with a mystery and ends with a mystery and appears to be littered with "Easter eggs" throughout with symbolism and metaphors. In the end you will be left thinking and wondering for quite some time and long after the movie is over about the ending itself and any potentials clues, symbols or other "Easter eggs" you may have missed.The main character, Don Johnston, appears to be named in such a manner as to symbolize one who was perhaps a player who's prime was back in the 80s when Don Johnson was in his prime. However in the present day Don Johnston is retired and wealthy but a shadow of what he once was and lives a rather empty unfulfilled life falling asleep on his couch while watching TV.At the end you feel as if the final scene would be appended with a Twilight Zone epilogue by Rod Serling making his poignant comments. "Don Johnston, a man who began a quest looking for answers and instead found himself with more questions. I think Don has a few more journeys in his future, journeys to destinations known, those unknown and those that may only be found in the Twilight Zone".The plot is simple but the elements are complex. Don Johnston (Bill Murray) receives an anonymous pink letter from an Ex girl friend telling him that he has a 19 year old son that may be seeking him out. Johnston's neighbor, Winston - a wanna be detective, develops a plan for Don to visit the four potential candidates in an attempt to ascertain who exactly wrote the letter. Winston also discovers that a fifth potential candidate has since died. In contrast to Don, his neighbor, (Winston - Played by Jeff Wright) has a yard full of life - chaos, playful activity of young children with toys strewn about - a beautiful wife with the colors of green yellow and red in abundance. Winston works 3 jobs and is much younger. Clearly the color symbols are being set forth up front and early on. The contrast of Murray and Wright's characters are striking, yet they have a close enough friendship that they can walk into each other's homes without knocking. The chemistry and warm interaction of the characters is just fantastic and there is a brilliantly witty scene of the two talking on their cell phones while in the same room.Before departing on his journey Winston is briefing Johnston while at a local diner. Winston has made all the travel plans, reservations, maps and driving directions. Johnston is about to depart and we hear the train whistle in the near distance. Another symbol? We then accompany Murray's character on his journeys to meet his ex girl friends and the narrative plays out in a similar fashion to Ebeneezer Scrooge being visited by the ghosts in a Christmas Carol. When Johnston makes his final visit to the grave of an ex girl friend you cannot help but visualize the similarity to the scene in a Christmas Carol where Scrooge is set before his own grave with the ghost of Christmas future. Scrooge became a changed man but did these ghosts change Johnston ?Johnston ventures outbound and visits the four potential candidates and we see varying quantities of the red yellow and green colors throughout. Don's interactions range from dinner and sleeping together to getting the door slammed in his face and punched unconscious. We accumulate different clues along the way to determine whom we can rule out and who is potentially the writer of the letter. Before we consider which of the possible candidates wrote the letter we are provided with one additional wild card. A pink letter and envelope arrives from Johnston's current girl friend - Sherry. Winston raises the postulate that Sherry possibly fabricated the original letter. In Winston's context "just to f4#k with you ?"Johnston and Winston convene and finish the debriefing in the same diner they met before the adventure. Shortly thereafter, just outside the diner, Johnston recognizes a young man that he saw at the airport whom he believes may be his son. Johnston strikes up a conversation with the boy and buys him some food and coffee. Johnston then suggests that he is the boy's father and that they should talk. The boy over acts responding as if Johnston is crazy and runs away as if he is being chased by a pack of Rottweilers. The acting by this character was the only negative element that I found in the movie. He over acted on his shy disposition when meeting Johnston and he over reacted when Johnston suggested that he was his son.Johnston then just stares at the end of the empty street. Shortly thereafter we see a car slowly approaching and a young man peering out the window at Johnston. Could that be his son we wonder ? Johnston wonders? What state license plate is that ? Canada ? Elsewhere ? We hear the train whistle again as if to symbolize the end of a game period ? Or the end of the mystery ?Johnston is left standing there contemplating-we contemplate with him- the camera pans 360 degrees around him.Time for Rod Serling to step in and take it away- I have no idea- I loved it - I can't wait to see more of this director's workt

robrundle2 One of my favourite Jarmusch films that I have thus far seen.I liked Bill Murray's casual, down played character and his contemplative, observations and subtle reactions on his mid-life antic.All of this pessimistic protagonist's former sweethearts are perfect incongruities with their own world of irony to rival his. Great performances by Julie Delpy and Sharon Stone.It plays out as an insightful, tellingly ironic and darkly comic journey about untied ends and broken relationships, with a central character piecing together puzzle and searching for his ex lover who may have given birth to his unknown son.This is a simple yet touching story with people you relate to and end up caring about and wanting to understand, despite their patent imperfections.