In his pulsating City Of God, director Fernando Meirelles put a quick-step verite and lush images of poverty tourism in the service of social awareness. But could he repeat the trick in an English language film? Apparently so.
By several parsecs the smartest mainstream release of the year, The Constant Gardener sees the Brazilian hotshot unravel John Le Carre’s Gordian knot of global corporate conspiracy, post-colonial discomfort and diplomatic scheming to fashion a gorgeous arresting thriller.
In this thoroughly tricksy universe, everything is inverted or reversed or distrust-worthy in some way. Ralph Fiennes (brilliantly understated) stars as a mild-mannered British diplomat and horticultural hobbyist turned completely unlikely avenger when his wife (Weisz) is found raped and murdered in rural Kenya. Through flashback, she’s fleshed out as a possibly wayward spouse, then an outspoken political activist with rather more knowledge of corporate skulduggery in Africa than the pharmaceutical multinationals are happy with. While a devilish Bill Nighy and a crawly Danny Huston conspire in the wings, The Constant Gardener builds toward a denouement which is both a grand romantic tragedy and a withering piece of political cynicism.
Then again, watching the film grapple with the extent that Africans are exploited by the west, you can’t help but think that it’s perhaps impossible to be cynical enough.