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Wish I Was Here

Play trailer Poster for Wish I Was Here R Released Aug 1, 2014 1h 47m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
45% Tomatometer 132 Reviews 59% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
Aidan Bloom (Zach Braff), a struggling actor, lives in Los Angeles with his wife (Kate Hudson) and two children, Grace and Tucker. Up until now, Aidan's father, Gabe (Mandy Patinkin), has been paying for the children's schooling, but he is now gravely ill. Thus, Aidan attempts to home-school his offspring. As his chaotic curriculum leads to some surprising self-discoveries for his family, Aidan must reassess his career, his relationships and his faith.
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Wish I Was Here

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Critics Consensus

There's no denying Wish I Was Here is heartfelt, but it covers narrative ground that's already been well trod -- particularly by director Zach Braff's previous features.

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Critics Reviews

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Inkoo Kang TheWrap Those Big Moments can represent catharsis, however, only to a viewer already on Braff’s wavelength. Otherwise, they merely strike audience members (including myself) as self-indulgent, even silly. And that’s probably all right with Braff. Mar 14, 2023 Full Review Lucy Vernasco Bitch Media By the end of the film, I felt like Wish I Was Here was trying to spoonfeed the audience hipster wisdom. Jan 22, 2021 Full Review Jason Bailey Flavorwire Just about all of the "compromises" that Braff says he'd have been forced to make (and I'm slightly perturbed to say this, being a fairly consistent support-the-artist type) would have made 'Wish I Was Here' a better film. Jun 18, 2016 Full Review JD Duran InSession Film Wish I Was Here is definitely a flawed film, but it’s themes are relevant and it’s emotional beats are still heartfelt. Rated: B+ Aug 19, 2024 Full Review Alex Denney NME (New Musical Express) Zach Braff's Kickstarter-funded dramedy is a self indulgent therapy session. Rated: 2/5 Apr 22, 2021 Full Review Richard Crouse Richard Crouse For every scene that rings emotionally true-and there are quite a few of them-there is another that feels forced. Rated: 2.5/5 Feb 1, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Dani G A simple, intrascendent but entertaining film. Braff is good at blending drama with some humor, much in the way of 'Garden State' Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 06/30/25 Full Review sebastian r It might not be as perfect as Garden State, but it's still very much underrated. It's a beautiful story of a person struggling with life and fatherhood. Maybe I can relate more than others, but I do love this movie. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review isla s I found this quite a touching film - its got sentimentality in it, as should be expected given its mainly about the impending death of a relative but its not overly, excessively cheesy in a predictably bad way. I was surprised given this is categorised as a comedy film but it does have some amusing moments - its more a pretty amusing film with some nice touches than a big laugh out loud sort of a film but I thought that overall it was really quite good as Zach Braff does a good job playing the main character, the father Aidan Bloom. I liked the kids, how they challenged their father at times and how the 3 of them got on together, while Kate Hudson plays their mother. The performances are decent and its both amusing and touching, with a nice amount of quirkiness, so I felt it was well made overall and on that basis I'd recommend it. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Commedia a forti tinte drammatiche, intima e delicata in quasi tutti i suoi aspetti. Zach Braff tiene bene lo schermo da protagonista in un ruolo che si costruisce bene attorno. I dialoghi sono scorrevoli, divertenti e quasi sempre naturali. Non si riesce a creare una particolare empatia con i personaggi e si finisce per godersi la storia senza mai entrarne veramente in contatto. Manca qualche cambio di ritmo, ogni tanto ci si adagia troppo sullo stesso mood. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/12/23 Full Review Audience Member Heartfelt film that has provided me with a captivating message of the importance of family and how family can make one mature and influence in continuing their passion. Zach Braff made a good initiative in incorporating this story into a film. I was shocked at the mixed reviews, but this film is worth watching with a family. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/03/23 Full Review Audience Member Esta película retrata perfectamente a personajes reales. Puedes identificarte con cualquier personaje. Me gustan los filmes como este que te dejan la cabeza dando vueltas. Te hacen pensar, reflexionar y revalorar tu vida. Necesitamos más cine como este. Esta película te moverá el piso al entender cómo pequeñas decisiones definen tu vida sin darte cuenta. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Wish I Was Here

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Cast & Crew

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Zach Braff

Director

Zach Braff

Aidan

Kate Hudson

Sarah

Mandy Patinkin

Gabe

Josh Gad

Noah

Joey King

Grace

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Wish I Was Here

Joey King as Grace in "Wish I Was Here." Kate Hudson as Sarah Bloom in "Wish I Was Here." (L-R) Pierce Gagnon as Tucker, Zach Braff as Aidan Bloom and Joey King as Grace in "Wish I Was Here." Pierce Gagnon as Tucker and Joey King as Grace in "Wish I Was Here." Josh Gad in "Wish I Was Here." (L-R) Joey King as Grace, Zach Braff as Aidan Bloom and Pierce Gagnon as Tucker in "Wish I Was Here." (L-R) Pierce Gagnon as Tucker, Joey King as Grace and Zach Braff as Aidan Bloom in "Wish I Was Here." (L-R) Zach Braff as Aidan Bloom, Mandy Patinkin as Gabe Bloom, Joey King as Grace and Pierce Gagnon as Tucker in "Wish I Was Here." Zach Braff as Aidan Bloom in "Wish I Was Here." (L-R) Mandy Patinkin as Gabe Bloom and Zach Braff as Aidan Bloom in "Wish I Was Here." View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Aidan Bloom (Zach Braff), a struggling actor, lives in Los Angeles with his wife (Kate Hudson) and two children, Grace and Tucker. Up until now, Aidan's father, Gabe (Mandy Patinkin), has been paying for the children's schooling, but he is now gravely ill. Thus, Aidan attempts to home-school his offspring. As his chaotic curriculum leads to some surprising self-discoveries for his family, Aidan must reassess his career, his relationships and his faith.
Director
Zach Braff
Producer
Stacey Sher, Michael Shamberg, Zach Braff, Adam Braff
Screenwriter
Zach Braff, Adam Braff
Distributor
Focus Features
Production Co
Double Feature Films, Second Stix Films
Rating
R (Some Sexual Content|Language)
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 1, 2014, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Dec 4, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA)
$3.6M
Runtime
1h 47m
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