The Constant Gardener DVD Review:

Trying to cope with the heartbreak of his wife’s death, Justin Quayle (Fiennes) doesn’t trust the British government’s findings and decides to start his own investigation into how she died. What he discovers draws him into a web of deception, cover-ups and murder. As he digs deeper and gets closer to the truth, he realises that Tessa (Weisz) has discovered something that could expose how the drug companies and governments of developed countries are exploiting Africa and its people.

Fernando Meirelles made a real impact with the visually compelling ‘City of God’ but can the Brazilian’s first English language movie make the same splash?

Based on the best selling novel by acclaimed author John le Carré, Meirelles takes his unique visual style and sense of story and character to Kenya, to tell a tale of the exploitation of Africa and its people. The director has an immeasurable skill as taking you into a story and letting the characters and what you have tell you run the pace of the movie. He also uses the camera as a witness or another character that follows the story along with the main players.

Utilising handheld filming techniques, Meirelles uses the camera to make the film more like a documentary of actual events than a fiction tale of deception and intrigue. He takes you into the heart of Africa, showing you its people, its problems and the people who are exploiting it. This is a movie with a lot to say and pulls no punches it in showing it and pointing fingers. With political, economic and social issues raised, the movie takes a long, hard look at how the developed world sees Africa as an opportunity and its own personal test bed for everything. This is certainly a film that will get you thinking and talking by staying long in the mind well after the final credits.

Bringing this story to life are two superb performances from the main players. Ralph Fiennes plays the good-natured Justin Quayle. He is a typically British, mild mannered member of the British High Commission in Kenya who has no real ambition or drive to move up the ladder. He would rather spend time in his garden than deal with the political or social injustices with the country he now lives in. This all changes when his wife is killed and his love for her drives him to find out what happened and the reasons behind it. This is another scene stealing performance from Ralph Fiennes, proving again that he is one of the best actors of his generation. It is Rachel Weisz that truly drives the film however. Shown in flashback as Justin recounts his memories or as revelations have been uncovered, it is Tessa Quayle that is plot device that drives the movie and Justin’s quest for answers and justice. She has always been an actress to take notice of but this is a role that will push her into the more serious actress category and away from her usual Hollywood fair. The movie also has some good supporting performances from Danny Huston, Hubert Koundé, Bill Nighy and Pete Postlethwaite, who all drive the movie to its dramatic conclusion.

‘The Constant Gardener’ is a movie with a lot to say and pulls no punches in saying it. With outstanding performances from the two main players and their support and a director who takes you into the heart of the story, this is film that will stay with you for a very long time.

Star Rating = * * * *

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Widescreen 1.85:1 Anamorphic with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the transfer is extremely good, capturing the pure essence of the Kenyan setting.

BONUS FEATURES

Deleted Scenes (10.33 mins)
Four deleted scenes showing more of Sandy’s home life, more of Justin’s investigations, a confrontation in the British High Commission and Kenyan life. Unfortunately these scenes are not accompanied by either an introduction or commentary track to say why they were removed.

Extended Scene: Harvma – Play in Kibera (9.42 mins)
Watch the full version of the informational play about AIDS prevention shown partly in the movie.

Embracing Africa: Filming in Kenya (9.29 mins)
Director Fernando Meirelles, producer Simon Channing Williams, Kenyan casting director Emily Mabonga and stars Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Wiesz talk about filming in Kenya. The cast and crew reveal how they actually choose to shoot in the same place as the book was set and not in South Africa as originally planned. They also discuss what it was like filming and working there and the extraordinary cooperation they receive from the Kenyan people themselves.

John Le Carré: From page to Screen (8.08 mins)
Director Fernando Meirelles, producer Simon Channing Williams, former British High Commissioner Sir Edward Clay and novelist John Le Carré himself talk about the adaptation of ‘The Constant Gardener’. The author reveals how he feels about adaptation of his books by Hollywood in the past and how he feels that this is the best he as seen in a very long time. He also reveals how he came about the idea for the book and how film differs from the novel.

Anatomy of a global thriller: Behind the scenes of The Constant Gardener (11.35 mins)
Director Fernando Meirelles, producer Simon Channing Williams, novelist John Le Carré and stars Ralph Fiennes, Rachel Weisz, Danny Huston, Bill Nighy Donald Sumpter and Pete Postlethwaite take you to Kenya for the adaptation of ‘The Constant Gardener’. The featurette looks at the implications and power of the story, the strength of the characters and the exploitation of Kenya and Africa by First World countries.

Trailers
Previews of ‘Brick’, ‘Cinderella Man’ and ‘Law & Order’

OVERALL

Universal has done a decent job with the DVD transfer of ‘The Constant Gardener’. The featurettes are a little short but informative but the lack of a commentary track for a film with such a lot to say is almost criminal. Fans however should be pleased and anyone who missed this marvellous movie on the big screen should catch it now.



Jamie Kelwick

There is a lot of attention given to filmmakers after they have had success. The first film is only looked at with any consequence if it is good, but when the filmmaker must decide on his next film, it is guaranteed that he will be examined. Director Fernando Meirelles drew attention on himself with City of God, and it was no surprise when The Constant Gardener was watched carefully. This must have been a fact that Meirelles was extremely aware of, because The Constant Gardener is a calculated and well executed thriller, almost to a fault.

The Constant Gardener is a suspense thriller that creeps up on you in what first seems like a drama about a man who has lost his wife. In many ways the first half of the movie reminded me of Keith Gordon’s Waking the Dead. We see through flashbacks how a diplomat falls in love and marries a woman whose radical ideas often get him into trouble at dinner parties. The two of them move to Africa for his job, but she has plans of her own, which end up getting her killed. As he searches for the truth he finds that she had uncovered a conspiracy which was killing hundreds of people and putting many more at risk. The closer he gets to the truth, the likelier it seems that he will be the next victim.

Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz both do fantastic jobs with the scenes that they have away from each other, which is most of the film, but there is something not quite believable about their relationship. It isn’t that they are doing a bad job, or that there isn’t any chemistry, but it just seems that the script never gives proper time to establish that they love each other. If anything it seems that he loves her while she is simply using his status to try and change the world. This makes him seem like a chump and her seem cold, and that doesn’t help for the rest of the film.

It is a slow building story; one in which car chases end up being paranoia more than anything else. It is more of a realistic film, so the action is usually not even shown. It is all done so that we just get glimpses of suspense, leaving more to the imagination. This style is similar to City of God, and it is obvious that Meirelles has a very distinct way of shooting films. It is almost a calculated sense of chaos that he seems to be going for in most shots.

The DVD has a great menu for the film, and plenty of trailers before the menu, but aside from the film it is the special features which are most impressive. There are some of the usual bonuses, such as deleted and extended scenes, but they are not entirely film altering. There are a few featurettes which are great though. There is a featurette on the adapting of the John Le Carre story and one on filming in Kenya. There is also a behind the scenes featurette as well.

Ryan Izay