Film review

The same beauty, vivaciousness and infectious energy that characterized 2002’s City of God also appear in Fernando Meirelles' follow-up work, the lushly realized Constant Gardener. In addition to Meirelles, the two films also share cinematographer César Charlone, whose documentary images of both films' locations create an authenticity rare in modern film. The duo has swapped Brazil for Kenya, and corrupt children’s gangs for corrupt drug companies to tell an equally poignant, if less shocking, tale of violence and iniquity. Gardener opens with British diplomat Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes) being informed of the death of his feisty activist wife, Tessa (Rachel Weisz). He is not only informed that her body has been found, however, but also told by the villainous Sandy (Danny Huston) that she had been having an affair with her dead companion, Dr. Arnold Bluhm, among others. Gardener is not as much a thriller as it a love story between Justin and Tessa as he delves into the life of the wife he never really knew. As he continues her work, exposing Western pharmaceutical companies for their African crimes, he discovers loyalty in the wake of her rumored infidelity. The film features a number of fine performances: Bill Nighy is deliciously evil as a cold-hearted government official, looking as if he hasn’t taken off his zombie make-up from his stint in Shaun of the Dead. Weisz is lovely and likeable in flashbacks as the passionate activist. Fiennes is at his subtle best. In the beginning he is so aloof that he hardly shows any emotion even when told of Tessa's death—when he identifies her in the morgue, it is he who comforts Sandy and not the other way around. This allows for the film's most intriguing arc, as Justin leaves his stoicism behind in favor of his wife's fervent conviction. His hobby of yardwork is what ostensibly gives the film its title, but he and Tessa’s constant digging for the truth lends the name a deeper meaning. Although the film may have benefited from a few shaved minutes, the gorgeous cinematography makes the journey worth it. Meirelles and Charlone manage to find the beauty in the slums of Kenya through vivid colors, charming natives-turned-extras, and extraordinary camera work. The script may center on a conspiracy and a love story, but the film as a whole, with its incredible photography documenting the continent's beautiful geography and striking class differences, becomes really just about Africa, warts and all.