Wish I Was Here scrubs up fine

Zach Braff became famous as the star of the sitcom Scrubs and made a bit of a splash with his 2004 movie as writer, director and star, Garden State. It was a likeable, introspective comedy-drama about a troubled, struggling actor returning home for his mother's funeral and dealing with emotional and family issues. Now, a decade later, and this time collaborating on the script with his brother Adam. he's made another likeable,  introspective comedy-drama in which he plays a troubled would-be actor who's dealing with emotional and family issues.

So, yes, there are similarities. But that's not to suggest the stories are identical. This time, the older Braff plays Aidan Bloom. who's married - to the hardworking Sarah (Kate Hudson) - and the father of two children. He's still trying to pursue his dream of being an actor, but hasn't had much luck lately.

Then comes an announcement that's a blow in more ways than one. His father Gabe (Mandy Patinkin, more restrained than he can be) has been paying for the children to attend a Jewish private school but has discovered he has cancer and will no longer be able to afford the tuition fees as he seeks treatment.

Aidan  decides to homeschool the kids rather than send them to a second-rate public school. He also tries to do what he can for his father and to encourage his estranged brother Noah (Josh Gad) to reconnect with Gabe.

It's a rambly sort of movie, as Aidan  tries to deal with his various roles - husband, father, brother, son, actor - and if you didn't like Garden State and aren't fond of Braff, then this probably isn't a movie for you.  But if you are willing to go along  on his journey of discovery, there are pleasures to be had, including the scenes with Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) as a fellow struggling actor and Joey King as Grace, the daughter who embraces Judaism more than her parents.

There are some lulls and misjudgments - the fantasy sequences involving Aidan as a spaceman seem unnecessary, though they give the movie a bit of visual pizzazz, and some   scenes involving the rabbi are a bit too cute. And the windup might seem a little pat. But while this is far from a classic, it's a personal, sincere and likeable movie - funded in part through a Kickstarter campaign -  and it will be interesting to see what Braff does next.