The Constant Gardener (DVD)

Finally, the one movie of 2005 I truly regret missing in theaters. The Constant Gardener received so much praise throughout the year and is still gaining kudos as the Award Season is now in full bloom, and for good reason, this is a good movie. It's emotionally intriguing as well as thrilling, but it is also so much more than a thriller. The storyline at the heart of this film is the story of a man and his undying love for his wife, and it is impossible to escape the emotion this plotline embodies.

I am going to give you the synopsis as far as I knew it going into the film. This means leaving out a major detail. I went in not knowing this detail and I think it made it a better film because of it.

Justin Quayle (Fiennes) is a member of the British High Commission and while his demeanor is quite tame he couldn't have fallen more in love with the passionate and ambitious Tessa (Weisz). Tessa's passion is activism and her current focus is Northern Kenya where she keys in on quite the pharmaceutical scandal, a scandal that will force Justin out of his greenhouse and across three continents in order to get at the truth, a truth he did not expect to find.

The above synopsis is slightly vague once you know the whole story. It is an abridged version of the official synopsis, but I believe it is a synopsis that will allow you to connect to this movie on a far more emotional level. With that said, don't go reading the back of the DVD box either! Don't go ruining my attempts to keep the little secret of The Constant Gardener quiet until you have experienced the first 15 minutes of the movie. It's nothing major and don't take this as a big build up, it is sometimes simply more fun not knowing.

As far as this DVD is concerned, you may be disappointed there is not a feature commentary with Fiennes, Weisz and Fernando Meirelles (director of City of God, but when you have two British actors and a Brazilian director it may be hard to get them back together for a DVD commentary once the multi-million dollar shoot is over with. Is that sarcasm I hear? I am just saying it would have been nice to hear the opinions of these three considering the overwhelming rollercoaster ride this movie is.

While there is not an audio commentary there are a couple of goodies you will be interested in. First to the deleted scenes. Normally deleted scenes don't do much for me, they are deleted for a reason and most often it is because they don't fit in the movie or they just suck. That said, there is one scene that was cut out of this film and deservedly so, but it could almost serve as a short film on its own. Granted it would be a two minute film, but it has great music (as does this entire movie) and is visually spectacular. It is the last scene in the deleted scenes section for those of you that are interested.

The other features include a look at the filming of the movie, which took place almost entirely in Kenya, a featurette dedicated to the work of author John Le Carre of which the film is based on and an encapsulating feature giving you a behind-the-scenes look at the filming of The Constant Gardener.

Overall, this DVD is a good one, but it is not for everyone. The Constant Gardener is a political thriller/dramatic love story told through unusual means. This is a thinking person's movie and it may find much more appreciation with a film-loving audience rather than with those that love the crash and bang of blockbusters, but if you give it a chance I am sure you won't be disappointed.