The Constant Gardener poster & wallpaper

Ralph Fiennes, Rachel Weisz, Hubert Kounde

When a British diplomat's wife -- a socially-conscious lawyer -- turns up dead in Kenya, he sets out to find the truth surrounding her murder. In the process, he finds out that his wife had been compi...( read more  read more... )ling data against a multinational drug company that uses helpless Africans as guinea pigs to test a tuberculosis remedy with unfortunately fatal side effects. Therefore, those who may have had the most reason to silence her are closer to home than he ever imagined.

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81% liked it

196,404 ratings

Critics

83% liked it

178 critics

R, 2 hrs. 9 min.

Directed by: Fernando Meirelles

Release Date: August 31, 2005

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DVD Release Date: January 10, 2006

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Scene from The Constant Gardener (2005) Scene from The Constant Gardener (2005) Scene from The Constant Gardener (2005) Ralph Fiennes as Justin Quayle in The Constant Gardener (2005) Ralph Fiennes in The Constant Gardener (2005) Ralph Fiennes as Justin Quayle in The Constant Gardener (2005) Rachel Weisz asTessa Quayle in The Constant Gardener (2005) Rachel Weisz asTessa Quayle in The Constant Gardener (2005) Rachel Weisz Ralph Fiennes as Justin Quayle in The Constant Gardener (2005) Rachel Weisz in The Constant Gardener Rachel Weisz Ralph Fiennes as Justin Quayle in The Constant Gardener (2005) Ralph Fiennes in The Constant Gardener (2005) The Constant Gardener The Constant Gardener Scene from The Constant Gardener (2005) Rachel Weisz asTessa Quayle in The Constant Gardener (2005)
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Flixster Reviews (8,922)

  • organgrinder136
    October 26, 2009
    organgrinder136
    really slow, really uneventful and really awful. maybe the book was the bomb... but this is not! ralph fiennes is mostly if not always dull... i feel a twinge back to the self loathing days of grunge. poor me for happening to have watched it. i feel sorry for myself.
  • SirPant
    September 30, 2009
    SirPant
    Another beautifully shot picture by Meirelles, this time a political thriller where the pharmaceutical companies are the bad guys. Although the ending didn't really keep with the rest of the film I felt that it had a good message to tell, albeit a slightly contrived one in places...( read more) but overall a vitally important one that needs to be taken notice of!
  • susanriley
    May 31, 2009
    susanriley
    A classic thriller wrapped in a true romance, moving, heartbreaking, endearing and beautifully shot.
  • EarthlyAlien
    March 7, 2009
    EarthlyAlien
    "Sorry, I've just got one question: Whose map is Britain using when it completely ignores the United Nations and decides to invade Iraq? Or do you think it's more diplomatic to bend the will of a superpower and politely take part in Vietnam the Sequel?"

    ...( read more)72.photobucket.com/albums/w25/EarthlyAlien/?action=view¤t=constant-gardener-5.jpg" target="_blank">Photobucket

    Ever since the conception of the motion pictures, the element of realism has been a topic of constant debate. Over the various decades and evolutionary periods of cinema, filmmakers have twisted the fabric of reality to actually bring about realism and at the same time stray far away from it. Not taking the field of documentary cinema into consideration, the concept of realism in cinema can only reach so far when it comes to depicting real people, real situations and telling real stories.

    The Constant Gardener is one of those few works of 'fiction' in which that very thin line is almost completely blurred. Above all a powerful tale of love set in the sun-dried terrains of Kenya, the film deals with the issues of international politics, unethical breach of human rights and ugly conspiracy. At the heart, the film still functions as a bonafide love story with love being the motivation for the protagonist, Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes) to uncover the ugly conspiracy behind the death of his deceased wife Tessa (Rachel Weisz, in the best performance of her career, regardless of the Oscar).

    Fernando Meirelles, the visionary behind the film, does a fantastic job adapting the story from the groundbreaking novel of the same name by British author John le Carré. César Charlone, the Uruguayan cinematographer who shot City of God, brings about a very original look to the photography by shooting the entire film hand-held which further adds to the realism of the events taking place. Meirelles goes as far as to allow Ralph Fiennes to do some of the hand-held POV shots for his character. The colour palette for the film is as separated as it is united.

    The cinematography in Africa is rich in colours with a prominent emphasis on teals and greens. The shot of the lake where both Tessa and Justin meet their end is just admirable with the jade water set against the honey-coloured sunset tied together by countless flights of birds and the final enlightenment in Justin's eyes. The segments of the film that are set in Britain and Amsterdam are drenched in cold, colourless blue casts signifying the coldness and the loneliness felt by Justin upon returning to his home land and still being unable to reach 'home'. Indeed, he aptly proclaims that his home was his wife Tessa.

    Apart from the levels of realism being constructed for the film in terms of location shooting and inclusion of real African people, the story also addresses a lot of issues that are real and true. Though the source for the story comes from a reality-inspired work of fiction, the film puts forward a formidable effort in staying true to the issues being addressed in both the story and the reality that inspired it.

    In the film, Western pharmaceutical giant KDH forms a marriage with a corporation called Three Bees based in Kenya to carry out testing on humans for the development of an experimental new drug named Dypraxa. There is a global tuberculosis epidemic coming and KDH intends to dominate the pharmaceutical market with this wonder-drug. But things take an ugly turn when Dypraxa turns up with a lethal side-effect which results in the death of several Kenyan human 'guinea pigs'. KDH continues to develop the drug and Three Bees continues to test it through Informed Consent of the unsuspecting villagers. Tessa Quayle, human rights activist and the wife of British Diplomat Justin Quayle discovers this operation and is put to silence in the process of uncovering it.

    Justin, oblivious of these events and dissatisfied with the half-baked answers to the reason behind his wife's death, embarks on a mission to learn the truth. His transformation from a mild-mannered, complacent British Diplomat to a person who gives a damn and understands the value of a human life is inspiring and so very heart-breakingly real. The film finds a proper balance in the parallel subjects of exploitation of human rights and the emotional love story of Justin and Tessa Quayle, each incomplete without the other.

    Mierelles succeeds in segregating the two powerful subjects and juxtaposing them in a way they appear almost inseparable. The wide landscape of Africa and the people inhabit the screen in a very detached manner, almost as if the camera is another person standing there with those people. On the other end of the spectrum we have the intimate love scenes between Justin and Tessa, where you almost never see both of them at the same time, which takes away the presence of another person with them and instead the camera becomes the gaze of the two lovers shifting back and forth between them.

    This is why when we see the stars in cinema, they look so charismatic and so God-like. The shallow depth of field, the immaculate colour correction and the expensive film stock all contribute in taking cinema far away from our real lives just to make sure that our undivided attention stays on the large rectangle of projected light for those 90 plus minutes or so.

    It is simply a work of irony that a medium of art which spends so much of its resources trying to make a product so unreal should give so much of a damn to wear its realism on its chest. The Constant Gardener provides an original mix of this irony without crossing over into becoming too concerned with real life or tread into the parallel universe of Hollywood cinema that fails to go beyond the borders of Florida. It is still just a film, but it educates and enlightens the shit out of you. A film that does that deserves to be seen over and over again.
  • mrpopcorn
    December 29, 2008
    mrpopcorn
    "Love. At any cost."

    A man discovers a deadly secret when he tries to find out who killed the woman he loves in this suspense drama based on a novel by John Le Carré. Justin Quale (Ralph Fiennes) is a low-level British diplomat who has been given a new assignment in Ken...( read more)ya. Justin's wife, Tessa (Rachel Weisz), is an activist with a keen interest in issues of poverty and social justice; Justin urges her to avoid getting too deeply involved in the people living in Kenya, who are constantly dogged by poverty, but she shows little interest in obeying these instructions. This isn't the only area where Tessa has disregarded her husband, who suspects that she may have had an affair - for she started spending time with a handsome doctor once they settled in Kenya. One day, Tessa disappears, and is found brutally murdered; officials believe that she was murdered by the doctor after some sort of argument. However, before long Justin becomes convinced that there was a larger scheme that led to Tessa's death, and he begins digging into areas where he's not especially welcome, given his reputation as a man willing to let the wealthy and powerful do as they will. The Constant Gardener was the first English-speaking feature from Brazilian filmmaker Fernando Meirelles, who directed the international success City of God.

    Review
    I really should run down to the store and rent Boogeyman. I haven't seen a bad film in weeks, and this is certainly no exception. Rachel Weisz whole-heartedly deserved her Oscar, though I cant quite understand why it was for supporting actress rather than actress in a leading role. In fact the entire cast was phenomenal, with special nods going out to Bill Nighy and, of course, the always great Ralph Fiennes. The plot had me guessing until the very end, and while the final outcome was unavoidable, I was still somewhat surprised. A word of warning however: If you're like many people I know, and dismiss movies simply for being "boring", this is not for you. The majority of the film is talking and there is very little action. If that kind of film bothers you, leave this one on the shelf. Otherwise, I highly recommend it.
  • vanckzhu
    November 23, 2009
    vanckzhu
    beautifully shot, but needs to be watched carefully.
  • dina0405
    November 10, 2009
    dina0405
    A masterwork of suspense, romance and political intrigue. I really enjoyed this movie.
  • hummo7
    October 30, 2009
    hummo7
    this film is too constant
  • sarahgoode
    October 28, 2009
    sarahgoode
    I was disappointed in this one. Rachel Weisz was great but the story fell a little flat for me.
  • monkeybobbob
    October 6, 2009
    monkeybobbob
    Interesting suspense thriller. When a British diplomats wife is found murdered in Kenya, he sets out to find the truth behind it. What he finds is that she has been fighting against a drug company that tests its chemicals illegally on African people with often fatal effects. This...( read more) find leads to possible danger for the diplomat when he tries to find those directly responsible. An absorbing thriller with good performances from the dependable Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz.

View All The Constant Gardener Reviews

Critic Reviews

August 31, 2005
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

Meirelles clearly trusts his actors, particularly Fiennes and Weisz: The plot of The Constant Gardener is fairly intricate, but in the end, the story is told mostly in their faces. full review

August 31, 2005
Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

Smart, well-crafted and satisfying. full review

August 31, 2005
A.O. Scott, The New York Times

Fernando Meirelles's excellent adaptation of the novel by John le Carré is likely to linger in your mind and may even trouble your conscience. full review

August 31, 2005
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

This is one of the year's best films. full review

August 30, 2005
Nick Schager, Filmcritic.com

Unbalanced... disingenuous... cares no more about Africa than do the story's evil villains at a make-believe drug company. full review

August 30, 2005
David Edelstein, Slate

It might inspire you to haul out those garden spades and get digging. full review

August 30, 2005
Marcy Dermansky, About.com

A gripping thriller, an unbelievably romantic love story, and a biting political take-down of pharmaceutical corporations that have Godlike power over life and death. full review

August 29, 2005
Anthony Lane, The New Yorker

The fact that none of the above is satisfactorily answered, and that we nevertheless emerge from the movie feeling nourished and stirred, is a tribute to Meirelles and, of course, to le Carré. full review

August 11, 2005
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Prepare for a thrilling ride. full review

View more The Constant Gardener reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments

  • reverendbizarre
    October 30, 2008
    reverendbizarre
    What's with the font? lol
  • karthu1993
    October 18, 2008
    karthu1993
    Rchel had to receive the oscar nomination for the best actress in lead role not supporting.
    She is not just the heroine but the main theme of the movie.
  • karthu1993
    September 26, 2008
    karthu1993
    Rachel weisz was superb. movie overall was good. ending was dissappointing though
  • zlon
    April 10, 2008
    zlon
    AS in my comment, it is even better to read the book . The film covers just 30-40 pages out of ca 350 pages.
  • aprilneo
    March 5, 2007
    aprilneo
    I liked the political aspect. You could substitute the TB remedy for an AIDS drug. I would not doubt in the slightest this goes on in the poorer countries every day. Good movie.
  • Prelude
    January 24, 2007
    Prelude
    Definitely headed up by some left wing idealist. Pretty good anyway.
  • bhaviez
    September 23, 2006
    bhaviez
    totally subtle yet very effective.

    a slow.. not too suspenseful movie about a topic that would normally be sensationalised in a Hollywood Blockbuster.. but this movie creates drama through gorgeous cinematography, well utilised flashbacks and a lack of histrionics.

    well worth seeing on a night when you feel like something a bit serious and not light-hearted entertainment.

    the slightly unusual ending particularly captivated me.
  • Eastersausage
    May 16, 2006
    Eastersausage
    Greatest Movie of all TIME!!
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The Constant Gardener Trivia

  • This movie stars Ralph Fiennes and was directed by the same man who gave us the brazilian masterpiece City of God.  Answer »
  • complete the title of the movie with Ralph Fiennes "The ________ Gardener"  Answer »
  • Fernando Meirelles the director of CITY OF GOD, Which of these movies did he also direct?  Answer »
  • who won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in the Constant Gardener?  Answer »
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