In Broken Flowers Bill Murray reprises the role of Bob from Lost in Translation.

Whereas in Sophia Coppola’s film we have a wistfully irreverent film that explores the alienation of Bob to his life through the feeling alienation a westerner experiences in Japan, Broken Flowers is an indie film that tries to be twice as clever and half as fun.

The symbolism, the sets, the quiet silent moments and the utterly unsatsifying ending all create this feeling of alienation in the audience. This peculiar sense of why the f**k am I watching this movie? And can someone please the gun…

spoilers below…

The movie begins in Don’s sterile home. His girlfriend abandons him. His aloneness is contrasted with the vibrant life in his neighbors house. A house that has 5 children, a wife and celebrations of life. In case we miss the comparison, his girlfriend asks: Don’t you want to be like Winston, your neighbor?

Stuck in this lonely space, an ex sends him a letter announcing a child that may or may not be looking for him. With nothing better to do, he goes on a roadtrip to visit the four girlfriends he had some twenty years ago. The first is a blue collar widow of a NASCAR driver. The second a sterile frigid woman who once was a hippie. The third a pet therapist who is now a lesbian. The fourth quintessential white trash that will not speak to him. The fifth is dead.

When he arrives back home he notices a young man that appears to be following him. He approaches the young man and we think for a moment that boy must be the son. However, when confronted with this comment, the young man reacts violently and runs away. Don is thus left alone and confused and wondering what exactly the point of his life really was.

In case we miss that point the camera pans around him and we realize he is standing staring at a four way intersection in some random neighborhood.

There is a cult of indie worship in this world. I am fan of good movies. This movie was too clever and not fun.

Pass.