A stylistic puzzler
This review has to be couched by mentioning the amount of times my eyes rolled at the very premise of a dirty drug company that was testing drugs on a helpless, pathetic African population. Why create a multifaceted corporation that has made bad decisions when it is far easier to demonize a faceless corporation and celebrate the revolutionaries bent on taking them down. The film´s antagonist comes across not as sinister but as painfully stereotypical, short-sighted, and posited with an obvious agenda. Fortunately that´s my only major qualm with "The Constant Gardener."
At the end of the film, you may not like--or even respect--the characters in this film. Because they are complex, rounded (for good and bad), and morally ambiguous (as most people are) it is hard to empathize with them. However the pathetic connection comes from the emotions they put forth; we´ve all felt love for a person, felt shattered when that bond was broken, felt the loss of a loved one. Because these root emotions underpin a very political mystery story, "The Constant Gardener" succeeds in entertaining.
Video:
Presented in a 1.85:1 Anamorphic transfer, "The Constant Gardener" looks like a fairly low-budget film. There is a heavy amount of grain that runs through the entire length of the film, making a lot of scenes look soft. I think that is a stylistic choice since the trailer looks much the same. There are no problems with compression or film artifacts; I didn´t notice a single scratch on the screen, nor a fleck or dot.
Audio:
The default Dolby Digital 5.1 track is a nice listen, though nothing special. The surrounds are used for music and crowd noise in a few, select scenes and the subwoofer barely even makes an appearance. This is a quiet film and the audio track represents that nicely.
Extras:
There are about ten minutes worth of deleted scenes that flesh out a few of the supporting characters, something that would have benefited the film, along with more explicit discussions of the killer corporation and a few excised (trimmed, really) collage scenes of the African landscape. An extended version of the trippy play included in the film is presented for theatre buffs.
The cast and crew sit down to talk about the process of setting and shooting the film in Africa, particularly in Kenya. "Embracing Africa" is a fairly earnest exploration of how to make a movie in difficult, poor conditions. It wasn´t sets that were populated with actors for this film; it was real life recorded on the screen.
"John Le Carre: From Page to the Screen" is a talk with the writer of the literary source of the story about adapting this book, the challenges of making it in Africa, and the process of adaptation in general. Le Carre and the producers all chat during this brief feature about the pains they went through to produce "The Constant Gardener."
"Anatomy of a Global Thriller" is an EPK look behind the scenes of "The Constant Gardener." It´s more recap than new information and only illuminating when the cast and crew get to reflect on their roles, particularly writer John Le Carre.
Overall:
"The Constant Gardener" is a sexy, thrilling, often confusing, and overall interesting ride. Despite the political posturing this film is entertaining. Different elements, including bits that transcend generic trappings, culminate in a neat movie. In the extras, actress Rachel Weisz says that this film lacked the traditional bits of a movie, like hitting marks, and that lack of structure does show, both for good and for ill. Fortunately the former outweighs the latter, adding up to a neat film.
At the end of the film, you may not like--or even respect--the characters in this film. Because they are complex, rounded (for good and bad), and morally ambiguous (as most people are) it is hard to empathize with them. However the pathetic connection comes from the emotions they put forth; we´ve all felt love for a person, felt shattered when that bond was broken, felt the loss of a loved one. Because these root emotions underpin a very political mystery story, "The Constant Gardener" succeeds in entertaining.
Video:
Presented in a 1.85:1 Anamorphic transfer, "The Constant Gardener" looks like a fairly low-budget film. There is a heavy amount of grain that runs through the entire length of the film, making a lot of scenes look soft. I think that is a stylistic choice since the trailer looks much the same. There are no problems with compression or film artifacts; I didn´t notice a single scratch on the screen, nor a fleck or dot.
Audio:
The default Dolby Digital 5.1 track is a nice listen, though nothing special. The surrounds are used for music and crowd noise in a few, select scenes and the subwoofer barely even makes an appearance. This is a quiet film and the audio track represents that nicely.
Extras:
There are about ten minutes worth of deleted scenes that flesh out a few of the supporting characters, something that would have benefited the film, along with more explicit discussions of the killer corporation and a few excised (trimmed, really) collage scenes of the African landscape. An extended version of the trippy play included in the film is presented for theatre buffs.
The cast and crew sit down to talk about the process of setting and shooting the film in Africa, particularly in Kenya. "Embracing Africa" is a fairly earnest exploration of how to make a movie in difficult, poor conditions. It wasn´t sets that were populated with actors for this film; it was real life recorded on the screen.
"John Le Carre: From Page to the Screen" is a talk with the writer of the literary source of the story about adapting this book, the challenges of making it in Africa, and the process of adaptation in general. Le Carre and the producers all chat during this brief feature about the pains they went through to produce "The Constant Gardener."
"Anatomy of a Global Thriller" is an EPK look behind the scenes of "The Constant Gardener." It´s more recap than new information and only illuminating when the cast and crew get to reflect on their roles, particularly writer John Le Carre.
Overall:
"The Constant Gardener" is a sexy, thrilling, often confusing, and overall interesting ride. Despite the political posturing this film is entertaining. Different elements, including bits that transcend generic trappings, culminate in a neat movie. In the extras, actress Rachel Weisz says that this film lacked the traditional bits of a movie, like hitting marks, and that lack of structure does show, both for good and for ill. Fortunately the former outweighs the latter, adding up to a neat film.
Average user rating (1-5):
[release]17391[/release]