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Bill Murray, Jeffrey Wright, Sharon Stone, Frances Conroy, Jessica Lange ... see more see more... , Tilda Swinton , Julie Delpy , Mark Webber , Chloë Sevigny , Christopher McDonald , Alexis Dziena , Larry Fessenden , Pell James , Heather Alicia Simms , Brea Frazier , Christopher Bauer

A man sets out to find the son he didn't know he had and winds up getting answers to some questions he never asked in this comedy drama from director Jim Jarmusch. Don Johnston (Bill Murray) is an emo... read more read more...tionally blank middle-aged man who has never married and lives a quiet, comfortable life thanks to shrewd investments in computers (though he doesn't use one himself). After being given his walking papers by his latest girlfriend, Sherry (Julie Delpy), Don receives an anonymous letter informing him he fathered a son 19 years ago, and that the boy wants to find his dad. Not sure what to do, Don shows the note to Winston (Jeffrey Wright), a neighbor who fancies himself an amateur detective. With Winston's help, Don narrows the list of possible mothers down to four women, and with a mixture of reluctance and resigned determination he sets out to find them. Armed with a CD of traveling music from Winston, Don pays unannounced visits to Laura (Sharon Stone), an oversexed widow with a libidinous teenage daughter (Alexis Dziena); Dora (Frances Conroy), a stuffy real estate agent; Penny (Tilda Swinton), an aging biker with no happy memories of Don; and Carmen (Jessica Lange), a self-styled analyst for pets whose outward eccentricity disguises a firm inner stability. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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68% liked it

90,840 ratings

Critics

88% liked it

184 critics

R, 1 hr. 46 min.

Directed by: Jim Jarmusch

Release Date: August 5, 2005

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DVD Release Date: January 3, 2006

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Stats: 4,708 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (4,708)

  • brooklynspo
    April 16, 2007
    brooklynspo
    Still-life with Bill. Low-key semi-detached and floaty. A little sad, a little funny and a lot of driving - at least there were good tunes for the ride.
  • FilmFanatik
    March 9, 2012
    FilmFanatik
    I had a hard time making up my mind about how I felt about Broken Flowers, but after much self-debate, I think I've made up my mind. I think the thing about Broken Flowers that makes me want to like it so much is the performance of Bill Murray. People will say that he doesn't rea... read morelly do much in this film, but if you pay close attention, his character is subtle and his actions are true to it. You really get the feeling that he's someone who's gotten to the point in their life when they feel regret and realize how alone they are. You get a sense that he sees the mistakes of his past and that he's trying to overcome them, even if he doesn't really want to. His character is far more interesting than those around him, which is where I think the film fails. Everyone he visits in the story seem to be just as successful as he is financially, but they're also lost emotionally, giving him no counter-balance as a character, and not much to feed off of. He seems surprised by it when he meets them, but I just don't buy into it. That said, this movie isn't a waste of time, by no means. It's a character journey, even if the character doesn't really get anywhere. It's pretty unorthodox, and mostly still, but you feel sorry for him and that's the main appeal of the film to me.
  • blkbomb
    December 9, 2011
    blkbomb
    Don Johnston: Well, the past is gone, I know that. The future isn't here yet, whatever it's going to be. So, all there is, is this. The present. That's it. 

    "Sometimes life brings some strange surprises."

    Broken Flowers is a film that I just found nothing likable about it. It's... read more an offbeat indie film, but not in a way that would make it, either funny or emotional. The film is dull and pretty boring, which is a first for me when Bill Murray is starring. There was only one scene I actually liked and that was the very last one in the film. Other than that I was just waiting for the movie to end. 

    A bachelor, Don, gets a letter from an anonymous lover of the past right after breaking up with his most recent girlfriend. In the letter, he is told that he has a son who is going to come looking for him and that son is 19 years old. Don has a few ideas of who the mystery mother of his child could be, so he tracks each and everyone of them down and meets with them. Some of the meetings turn out well, others awkward, and others horrible. We are never really told who the mother is in so many words, but we know anyway. 

    It isn't a horribly made or acted movie, it's just one I found no enjoyment in watching. I didn't get any satisfaction out of the subtle independent filmmaking in this case, like I normally do. That was somewhat surprising to me because I normally love movies like this.
  • fb1664868775
    October 27, 2011
    fb1664868775
    Jarmusch's gets back to true form after two mediocre projects. Bill Murray puts in yet another great performance.
  • paulkoh110
    October 25, 2011
    paulkoh110
    Dry humor+Jim Jarmusch = Hilarious and deep film about self-identity.

    This film also proves that Bill Murray is a HUGE hipster, which is pretty awesome!
  • crunchbunch
    February 3, 2011
    crunchbunch
    Broken Flowers is basically a film in which we follow around Don, played by the brilliant Bill Murray as he tries to find out which of his many ex lovers has secretly had a son by him and sent him a letter.

    A slow paced comedy that in a strange way is heart warming as we watch o... read moren as Don battles against wanting more from his emotionally empty life. Throughout the feature you cannot take your eyes away from Murray as we laugh, cry and cringe through his adventure only to end up where he started and none the better for it.

    An empty finish at first leaves you shocked but its the realisation by Don that he wants more without him knowing that makes the journey worth while.

    "That was quite an outfit you weren't wearing earlier. "
  • LWOODS04
    January 3, 2011
    LWOODS04
    Cast: Bill Murray, Julie Delpy, Jeffrey Wright, Frances Conroy, Jessica Lange, Sharon Stone, Tilda Swinton, Heather Alicia Simms, Brea Frazier, Mark Webber, Christopher McDonald

    Director: Jim Jarmusch

    Summary: After being dumped by another girlfriend (Julie Delpy), serial... read more bachelor Don Johnston (Bill Murray) vows he'll be alone forever. But when a mysterious unsigned letter arrives in the mail, he's surprised to learn he has a 19-year-old son. With no idea who the mother is, Don sets out on a cross-country journey to confront his past, surprising a series of old flames along the way.

    My Thoughts: "A character study film that moves at a slow pace, sometimes unbearable pace, but in an artistic way. It settles you into the surrounding's, and most of it is quite gloomy. The main character, Don Johnston, is a lonely sad individual. The feel of the film is depressing. It has some comedic relief, not a lot though. You meet some very interesting characters along his journey (that being his ex's). Each one of his ex's are very unique and quite different from one another. This movie also shows you that what you left in the past should remain in the past, hence why it's called the past. That includes the people you leave behind. Things are meant to change. It's unrealistic to live in the past or to predict what may come in the future, so as the movie says, what matters is now, the present. Great film, but the pace killed me. I am usually patient with slow moving films, I guess just not tonight."
  • FireStormStudios
    October 15, 2010
    FireStormStudios
    I went into this film torn. I never heard about it but I am a big fan of Bill Murray, so I did expect good things. I left it feeling pretty much the same way I entered it. This film was a lot of fun to watch, but it left me wanting more. I really liked how they took you throu... read moregh the main characters life, but I thought it was a little too stretched out for me. They took a very well done short film and stretched it out to a short feature. It kept me wondering the entire time what was going to happen to the protagonist and in the end even though what I wanted or thought might happen didn't happen, I still left satisfied with the outcome. If you are into an alternative style of directing, take a look at this one. It was nice to watch, but is not for everyone.
  • danperry17
    March 7, 2010
    danperry17
    Haunting, intelligent whimsy from Jarmusch in this tale of an accidental detective that, not quite so accidentally, turns into a detective/noir-style story. An interesting, funny and compelling film to say the least, with a hero perfectly underplayed by Bill Murray.
  • cosmo313
    November 6, 2009
    cosmo313
    The films of Jim Jarmusch are offbeat and quirky. This film continues that tradition. It also continues a recent trend of Bill Murray playing a sad sack character who is miserable and a mess, much like Jack Nicholson's character in About Schmidt. This film is a good one, and, whi... read morele there's noting really wrong wit hit per se, it's not great either. It just feels like things are set to autopilot. The performances from a wonderful cast are great though, as is the art direction/set design. I also liked the music, especially the inclusion of an excerpt from the song "Dopesmoker" by Sleep. Had I not already seen a handful of other films similar to this one, I would probably say that this film is absolutely brilliant. As it is though, I really really liked it, but I do not feel right giving it anything higher. Let's just call it the smallest A- possible or better yet, give it 4 and 1/4 stars out of 5.

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Critic Reviews

Ken Tucker
December 9, 2005
Ken Tucker, New York Magazine

Murray manages, almost impossibly, to come up with still another rich variation on his Depleted Man persona, and his performance is at once enormously generous and fiercely, concisely witty. Full Review

Roger Moore
September 16, 2005
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

A very gentle and wry outing for Jarmusch and his star. Full Review

Tom Long
August 12, 2005
Tom Long, Detroit News

Completely charming, but ultimately slight.

Terry Lawson
August 12, 2005
Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press

You can't take your eyes off [Murray], and you leave Broken Flowers hoping he's feeling better -- about life, love, everything.

Andrew Sarris
August 11, 2005
Andrew Sarris, New York Observer

It kept me absorbed all the way through, especially the collaboration between acting auteur Bill Murray and Mr. Jarmusch in virtually every frame of the film. Full Review

Stephanie Zacharek
August 5, 2005
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

[A] well-meaning but remote picture. Full Review

Ann Hornaday
August 5, 2005
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post

It takes someone with Murray's reservoir of audience goodwill to make such a maddeningly passive character even worth watching. Full Review

Mike Clark
August 5, 2005
Mike Clark, USA Today

Flowers is smartly observational -- but a little screen heat would be worth a bouquet. Full Review

Peter Howell
August 5, 2005
Peter Howell, Toronto Star

Those hound-dog eyes, and that weary sneer, reveal a man who understands the value of understatement. Full Review

Mick LaSalle
August 5, 2005
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

The movie doesn't come to a definitive point or make an explicit, but the movie does illustrate, in a penetrating way, the sadness of going through life emotionally disconnected. Full Review

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  • Bill Murray plays and "over-the-hill Don Juan" named Don in....  Answer »
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