The Constant Gardener

The Constant Gardener

Beautifully Shot, Riveting Story

“The Constant Gardener”, an adaptation of the novel by John Le Carre, tells the story of corruption, conspiracy and love from the heights of government to the depths of human suffering.

Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes) works for the British High Commission when he meets impassioned activist Tessa (Rachel Weisz). Although they are opposites, the pair immediately falls in love.

When Justin has to go to Africa, Tessa follows and becomes deeply involved in the plight of the people who are being ravaged by the AIDS epidemic and lack of needed drugs. Whether it’s confronting members of the High Commission at an evening soiree, writing reports denouncing the inappropriate use of drugs by powerful pharmaceutical companies or working with the people of an African village, Tessa, who at this time is quite pregnant, remains diligent. After a while, she becomes convinced that some of the local people are being slowly murdered.

However, Tessa’s work isn’t completed when she and her driver are killed in a roadside massacre. It’s then up to Justin to piece together the truth behind Tessa’s actions. Why was Tessa killed? Was she having an affair with Arnold (Hubert Kounde), a doctor in Africa? Justin soon finds himself embroiled in a life altering journey, where friends and enemies may not be who they seem but love is the one force that conquers all.

I really believe that if “The Constant Gardener” was released later in 2005, it could have been a serious contender for Best Picture. There were a lot of things I liked about this movie; first of all the cast. Fiennes and Weisz (who did win the best supporting actress Oscar for her role) seemed to have natural on-screen chemistry. Both were also powerful in the leading roles. One notable moment showed a lone Justin, looking through the glass doors of the house while standing outside. A flood of memories overcomes him and we see him sobbing at the doors. I think at that moment we truly feel the grief that he’s going through.

The supporting cast was also good. Bill Nighy as the snooty Sir Pellegrin and Danny Huston as Sandy Woodrow, the friend who is secretly in love (or lust) with Tessa were ideal. Hubert Kounde as Arnold and Dr. Lorbeer a.k.a. Dr. Brandt (Pete Postlethwaite), a M.D. for the pharmaceutical company who later seeks redemption in a small village in Kenya, were also interesting.

I also like the way that “less was more” in the movie. There were several instances, for example the murder of Tessa or when Justin identifies her in the morgue, where filmmakers could have shown moviegoers what happened in graphic detail. Although we don’t see that with “The Constant Gardener”, the descriptions and the few shots we do see lets us conclude/imagine just how horrible these situations are.

There were things that I liked and disliked about the way the movie was shot. Except for the first couple of minutes, Tessa is only seen through flashbacks in Justin’s memory. I liked the premise of this and really think this made the movie more intriguing. I also thought the flashback sequence of Tessa pleading for Justin to give a woman, a boy and a newborn baby a ride to the next village/city was exceptional when Justin, in current time, uses her own words when he wants to save a young girl during a village attack.

However, it’s easy to see how the switches from flashback to present time could be a little confusing. It may take a few seconds to determine which time frame you’re in.

A bit more background on Justin and Tessa would have been nice but wasn’t really needed to enhance the story. I also wasn’t quite sure about the gardening part. Was it an obsession, hobby, etc.? The movie really didn’t go into detail other than showing Justin working with plants/flowers two or three times.

“The Constant Gardener” is about having love, losing it and then finding out that you’ve never really lost it at all. It’s a beautifully shot drama with a riveting story and no happy ending.

Stay tuned for “The Constant Gardener” movie goofs.