There has been a lot of talk that "Broken Flowers" is Jim Jarmusch's most commercially accessible film to date. One can almost hear Jarmusch muttering something reactionary like "commercial? That's just a label." It's a label that some Jarmusch fans might associate with "selling out". But selling out does not apply to Jim Jarmusch. He still has complete control of his work and is still the only American filmmaker who owns his own negatives. If "Broken Flowers" does break into the mainstream, it is nothing overly deliberate. Jarmusch makes familiar films that seem intimate in their tone. He toys with old themes while still leaving his films open to interpretation.

"Broken Flowers" is a travelogue and like most Jarmusch films, the story is more concerned with the journey but not so much about the destination. Bill Murray plays Don Johnston, a man who we know little about. We know he's single and we know he's had some flame's in the past. The last one just walked out on him. When Don receives an anonymous letter from one of these old flames, he learns that he has a twenty year old son who might be looking for him." Don thinks this is a joke but takes the advice from a friend to unfold the mystery by tracking down his past flings. He flies somewhere to a generic American place, rents a car and begins his investigation. Each ex has an individual personality but most of them share something similar. They are content and have moved on from the past. One of the ex's we meet works in real estate and decides it would be a good idea for her to get into the water business because "one day in the near future it will be more valuable then oil." The atmosphere is awkward and rather then care whether this woman is responsible for the anonymous letter, we just feel like getting out of there. The film's journey is absurd in many ways because we are never sure what the real point is. What is Don going to do if he does find his son? This where Bill Murray's credit as an actor shines through. We see from his small facial gestures that he is empty, and sad. There is a sense of longing as if life took a wrong turn somewhere and it is only now that he is realizing it. The ending of "Broken Flowers" is what really makes the film special. Don't expect too much or too little. Just see it. Its inspiring, hopeful and better then any other movie this year. The film also has a great soundtrack by Ethiopian musician, Mulatu Astatke. And we see in the credits that Jarmusch dedicated the film to French filmmaker Jean Eustache. Jean Eustache made a phenomenal film in the 1960's titled, "The Mother and The Whore". He had an influence on John Cassavetes and likewise both had an influence on Jim Jarmusch.

This film is a film about a very, very, very quiet and non-emotive man who is a womanizer. He never married and as the film begins, his latest relationship is crumbling. At about the same time he receives a letter from an ex-girlfriend from 20 years ago saying that he is a father--but the letter is unsigned. At the insistence of his neighbor, he tracks down all his old girlfriends from this time period to find out who the real mother is. After a fruitless search, Murray seems to finally care about something in his life because he seems torn and genuinely saddened that he cannot find the son he never knew he had.

One the best examples of the great divide among movie aficionados are the recent films of Bill Murray. With recent films to his credit like THE LIFE AQUATIC, LOST IN TRANSLATION and BROKEN FLOWERS, there have been two diametrically opposed schools of thought. First, that these represent a deeper and more thoughtful sort of films. Evidence to support this is that the big name critics and the Academy have praised these films. Second, there are many people out there that feel that these new films are absolutely dreadful--neither entertaining nor interesting. I am definitely in that category, as it just seems as if Mr. Murray is sleepwalking through all these films--showing almost no emotion whatsoever. Heck, Ingmar Bergman films look like Looney Tunes episodes compared to the incredibly constricted and dull nature of these films.

As for me, I would love to see the old Bill Murray--the one who did the exceptionally funny GROUNDHOG DAY, WHAT ABOUT BOB? and THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO LITTLE. These films were entertaining and intelligent. When I knew he was bringing out a new film, I was sure to see it. But now, I just wonder why should I bother, as his performances look as if he could care less about the public at large.

Throughout all of BROKEN FLOWERS, Murray behaved like he was asleep--having practically no emotions and saying very, very little. Additionally, the film style was very stark and had many, many shots of nothing in particular--often scenery or passing images. It sure looked like the director was trying hard to be "artsy" but frankly it seemed inappropriate and self-indulgent. The only part of the film I liked was the very end--Murray's angst at not knowing was interesting, but unfortunately then the movie just ended and never really explored this in any detail.

FYI--The language isn't too bad in this film and there isn't that much violence but there is a full-frontal nude scene that seems to come from out of nowhere.

Don Johnston (Bill Murray) is a bit of a Don Juan although he doesn't like the comparison. He made a small fortune in computer and lives in isolation in his home watching old movies. His girlfriend Sherry (Julie Delpy) leaves him. A letter arrives from a former lover with news of a teen son approaching 19. His neighbor and friend Winston (Jeffrey Wright) is an amateur sleuth and plans out an excursion to track down his former lovers. Laura (Sharon Stone) has flirtatious daughter Lolita (Alexis Dziena). Dora (Frances Conroy) is married to stuffy Ron (Christopher McDonald). Carmen (Jessica Lange) has an assistant (Chloë Sevigny) in a pet therapist business. Penny (Tilda Swinton) has biker friends.

Bill Murray is more deadpan than usual in this one. It's in addition to Jim Jarmusch's minimalist style. It is very much his style and for fans of his work. The tone is not broadly comedic. There are sporadic chuckles but it's not enough for me to like. It's a little too quiet in this quietly funny film.