The Constant Gardener
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Rachel Weisz, Danny Huston, Bill Nighy, Daniele Harford, Hubert Kounde, Pete Postlethwaite, Nick Reding, Anneke Kim Sarnau, Donald Apiyo
Directed by: Fernando Meirelles

The Constant Gardener Reviewed by: Paul Heath

THE CONSTANT GARDENER is directed by a Brazilian, has an all star mainly British cast and is set mostly in Africa. This film, based on the novel by John Le Carre, is a truly wonderful piece of filmmaking, and fans of the director's previous work, CITY OF GOD, will instantly recognize the style of filmmaking, which almost has a documentary feel to it, putting you right in middle of the action.

The story goes like this. In the opening scene (thus this review does not spoil the plot for you) we find out that Tessa Quayle (Rachel Weisz), wife of Justin (Ralph Fiennes) has been killed/ murdered in a car accident over in Africa. As the film moves on, we discover that through a nonlinear storytelling style, that the accident may have more to it, after Justin Quayle discovers that his wife may have been into more that he first thought. The film tackles racism, Aids, loyalty, trust, politics, and above all love.

THE CONSTANT GARDENER, let's be honest, has possibly one of the worst movie titles ever, and I was kinda put off by the title when it was in theaters last year (the reason as to why the movie's called this soon becomes apparent). But whatever you do, do not let yourselves be put off by it, as you'll miss out on perhaps once of the best movies of the year. So why is it all that good?

Well, the main thing is not one thing at all, as it's not a particularly exciting plot on paper (although I'm sure the novel is as remarkable), but somehow Fernando Meirelles has pulled together a superb cast, with some delivering career best performances, used a wonderful cinematographic style and used the natural habitat of Africa as its stunning backdrop.

So, first of all, the cinematography. As I mentioned before, Meirelles uses a documentary, shooting from the hip, guerilla filmmaking style with some wonderful shots scattered throughout. For example, he chooses to use lovely saturated photography for the African scenes, and very bleak, almost black and white style shots for the London and Berlin scenes. It's a wonderful contrast, and superbly separates the two moods that the filmmakers were wanting to outline at various plot points. It has been done a lot subtlety in the past, but often nowhere near as effective as here. Also, look out for some great split focus shots, particularly in the opening scenes.

The actors are superb, and while there is not a standout performance, there also isn't a poor one. The two leads, Ralph Fiennes, and Rachel Weisz are brilliant, and Weisz kind of reminded me of a younger Kate Winslet, and delivers the kind of performance that you would almost expect of Winslet. I'm surprised that she hasn't gained more plaudits than she has for her work here. Fiennes is also back to his best, and again an Oscar nomination is surely a cert. The supporting players also play a key part, and the ever entertaining Bill Nighy is menacing and suave as the politician Sir Bernard Pellegrin (who has some of the best lines in the film), and the underused but ever brilliant Pete Postlethwaite delivers as desert doctor, Lorbeer. Other mentions are that of Danny Huston and Hubert Koundé, a relatively new face to western audiences, but definitely one to watch in the future.

So for Meirelles, well, he has done it again, and almost improves on his debut, even though he has the much added pressure of having a much bigger canvas to paint upon. He does well, intertwining past memories with present day action (most of the first half of the movie is told in flashback), and tugs at your heartstrings, pushes you to the end of your seat and glues your eyes to the screen for the entire 126 minutes. It's true, THE CONSTANT GARDENER is a movie that grips you from start to end, and you really need to pay attention for all of it, as it's an intelligent, thought provoking adventure that never lets up. If there was a downside, then it would be just that - you really have to pay attention to keep up, and to be honest if you fall behind, the running time may get to you, but there's enough action and more to keep you entertained. It's also almost perfect for DVD because of this, and I'd recommend this film to all. Definitely one of the best films of the year so far.

On to the extras. Well, there are the always present deleted scenes, and an extended scene entitled "Haruma Play In Kibera". All are seemingly included to pad out the features, but are mildly entertaining. There are also three featurettes, called EMBRACING AFRICA: FILMING IN KENYA, which looks at how the filmmakers warmed to filming in the area after the production was so heavily embraced by the locals, JOHN LE CARRE: FROM PAGE TO THE SCREEN, which features an interview with the British author who talks about his book, and how it made it's way to the screen, and the longest of the three features, ANATOMY OF A GLOBAL THRILLER: BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE CONSTANT GARDENER, which covers all aspects of the production. I actually enjoyed all of these featurettes, with give a superb, if not brief look into the production of the movie.

I was a little disappointed with there no being a feature commentary from either John le Carre or indeed Fernando Meirelles, which would have been informative an interesting as this is such a huge, epic film from one of the best and most exciting newcomers to the film industry..

Surprisingly there is also no theatrical trailer on the release, which is unusual, although there are previews for a number of other Focus Features release before the main menu for the movie.

Overall, THE CONSTANT GARDENER is definitely worth you parting with your hard earned cash, and one I could recommend for repeated viewing. If you didn't catch it at cinemas, make sure you do on DVD. The film is released on the region one market (North America), from Tuesday 10th January, 2006.

For more information on the film, visit our DVD preview here.

Grade: A-

Paul Heath