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Source:
rec.art.movies.reviews newsgroup
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As he did in his wildly overrated CITY OF GOD (CIDADE DE DEUS), OSCAR nominee Fernando Meirelles once again creates a film that is a triumph of style over storytelling. This film version of John Le Carré's THE CONSTANT GARDENER fashions a simplistic world in which the United Nations is the source of all good while big businesses and governments are the source of all evil. (Before you go protesting the evil as shown in the film, you might want to check the reality of the situation, which is massive aid from both the United States and the British government into Africa in order to aggressively attack the AIDS epidemic there and big pharmaceutical firms providing their AIDS drugs below cost.)
Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes) is a wimpy British government administrator who falls head over heels in love with Tessa (Rachel Weisz) in their first encounter. He is delivering a dull lecture, which she upsets with a long diatribe against the war in Iraq and in favor of the U.N. She is an outspoken liberal activist who never backs down in the face of danger.
Although Weisz delivers yet another in a long series of strong performances, Fiennes is almost laughably bad. The character he creates has few believable moments.
The story, which lumbers along, cutting back and forth, never really tells us what positions Justin or Tessa hold or exactly what they really do for a living. Suffice it to say that he works for the big bad British government, who, in collusion with the drug companies, are killing Africans as they use the Africans as human genuine pigs. She, on the other hand, is trying to expose this exploitation and murder. None of this is believable for a minute. But, even if it were, the movie never really cares about the story, as it is too busy trying to score style points with some spectacular cinematography and dramatic images.
The movie, which is about a half hour longer that it needs to be, does make one suspect that there is a decent movie that could be made from this John Le Carré novel, but this version by Meirelles isn't it.
If you want to see more effective adaptations of John Le Carré novels, John Boorman's THE TAILOR OF PANAMA from 2001 is the most recent. Although many will probably point you to THE LOOKING GLASS WAR and THE SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD, both from the 1960s, as perhaps the best examples of Le Carré adaptations, for my money none is better than "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" and "Smiley's People," two television miniseries from the late 1970s and early 1980s.
THE CONSTANT GARDENER runs way too long at 2:09. It is rated R for "language, some violent images and sexual content/nudity" and would be acceptable for teenagers.
The film opens nationwide in the United States on Wednesday, August 31, 2005. In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the AMC theaters, the Century theaters and the Camera Cinemas.
By : Steve Rhodes (http://www.internetreviews.com/)
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Source:
rec.art.movies.reviews newsgroup
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The theatre was packed tonight, a Wednesday night, for what looked like a film that promised relief from the stream of duds and shallow movies as of late.
Ralf Fiennes plays Brit diplomat Justin Quayle, on location in Kenya. His wife, 24 year-old Tessa (34 year-old Rachel Weisz) , tags along with handsome Dr. Arnold Bluhm as he visits the villages, dishing out medical aid. Tessa is a committed social activist, critical of conglomerates who hand out free medicine, etc., and pieces together her observations with the Dr. to come up with a conspiracy theory that she submits to a respected higher up in the British High Commission. Of course, big trouble later ensues.
Shot in flash backs, the film is about Justin's one-man investigation of his wife's murder and the greedy players in the busines and political world who promise to profit enormously from the shady pharmaceutical industry's practices.
Some of camera work was disorienteering, as it is shot with a shaky hand-held camera. Some of the footage seems pointless. What's the point of having the scene with the bandits raiding the remote village? It's a bit disturbing to see the fleeing villagers being chased, shot or captured, while the huts burn to the ground. With a couple of scenes, you really get a sense of how little life is regarded over there as compared to the first world.
The main problem with this film is that it felt so unfocused. It's too long and drawn out. It's not a clear, succinct thriller. The sound in some of the room scenes is full of echoes. If you thought this was going to be anything like The English Patient, which also starred Ralf Fiennes, you will be surprised. The romance is played up but this is not a romance film. Fiennes, who is usually reserved in his roles, is surprisingly smiley with some boyish charm. Overall, the acting was quite solid.
It's based on a book by celebrated spy novelist John le Carré and directed by Fernando Meirelles, who was nominated for an Oscar for City of God. One of the best scenes is saved for last when Tessa'a lawyer steps up to give a eulogy at the church.
The Constant Gardener falls short of being one of the year's best films. It's not as good as The Hotel Rwanda but it strives to be above most of the cookie cutter releases and it somewhat succeeds on that count.
By : Triniman (http://trinimansblog.blogspot.com/)
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