Constant Gardener (The)
- Director: Fernando Meirelles
- Writer: John le Carré; Jeffrey Caine
- Producer: Jeff Abberley; Julia Blackman
CGiii Comment
It deserved to win the Oscar...but, it had stiff competition (Crash, surprisingly, won it).
As with the exceptional City of God, Meirelles brings us full circle - there is nothing straightforward about the narrative, it is complex and hypnotic - keeping you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end.
The editing, the washouts are bewildering.
The acting: perfect.
Meirelles is a director of importance - he pushes and eschews traditional film-making with an eye that is compelling and succinctly detailed.
Really, this is a masterwork and a benchmark.
The future of film is safe - in his hands.
Trailer...
The(ir) Blurb...
In a remote area of Northern Kenya, activist Tessa Quayle is found brutally murdered. Tessa's companion, a doctor, appears to have fled the scene, and the evidence points to a crime of passion. Members of the British High Commission in Nairobi assume that Tessa's widower, their mild-mannered and unambitious colleague Justin Quayle, will leave the matter to them. They could not be more wrong. Haunted by remorse and jarred by rumors of his late wife's infidelities, Quayle surprises everyone by embarking on a personal odyssey that will take him across three continents. Using his privileged access to diplomatic secrets, he will risk his own life, stopping at nothing to uncover and expose the truth - a conspiracy more far-reaching and deadly than Quayle could ever have imagined.
Cast & Characters
Ralph Fiennes as Justin Quayle;
Rachel Weisz as Tessa Quayle;
Hubert Kounde as Dr. Arnold Bluhm;
Danny Huston as Sandy Woodrow;
Daniele Harford as Miriam;
Packson Ngugi as Officer in Morgue;
Damaris Itenyo Agweyu as Jomo's Wife;
Bernard Otieno Oduor as Jomo;
Gerard McSorley as Sir Kenneth 'Kenny' Curtiss;
Bill Nighy as Sir Bernard Pellegrin;
Keith Pearson as Porter Coleridge;
John Sibi-Okumu as Dr. Joshua Ngaba;
Donald Sumpter as Tim Donohue;
Archie Panjabi as Ghita Pearson;
Nick Reding as Crick