The Constant Gardener (2005)

The Constant Gardener
details
Studio: Focus Features
Rating: R
Release Date: Aug 31, 2005
Running Time: 129 mins.
Country Of Origin: United Kingdom
Country Of Origin: France
Country Of Origin: Germany
Country Of Origin: Kenya
synopsis
In a remote area of Northern Kenya, the region's most dedicated activist, the brilliant and passionate Tessa Quayle, has been found brutally murdered. Tessa's traveling companion, a local doctor, appears to have fled the scene, and the evidence points to a crime of passion. Sandy Woodrow, Sir Bernard Pellegrin, and the other members of the British High Commission assume that Tessa's widower, their mild-mannered and unambitious colleague Justin Quayle, will leave the matter to their discretion. They could not be more wrong. This career diplomat's equilibrium has been exploded by the loss of the woman he was deeply devoted to. They were opposites whose attraction sustained a marriage, the memories of which now spur Justin to take decisive action for the first time in his life and diplomatic career. Haunted by remorse and jarred by rumors of his wife's infidelities, Justin surprises himself by plunging headlong into a dangerous odyssey. Determined to clear his wife's name and "finish what she started," Justin embarks on a crash course to learn about the pharmaceutical industry, whose crimes Tessa was on the verge of uncovering, and journeys across two continents in search of the truth. His eyes are soon opened to a vast conspiracy at once deadly and commonplace, one that has claimed innocent lives--and is about to put his own at risk.
cast + crew
Justin Quayle
Tessa Quayle
Sandy Woodrow
Sir Bernard Pellegrin
Arnold Bluhm
Officer in Morgue
Jomo's Wife
screenplay
Source Material
Executive Producer
Executive Producer
Co-Producer
Executive Producer
Executive Producer
Executive Producer
Co-Producer
Co-Producer
Executive Producer for Blue Sky Films
Executive Producer for Blue Sky Films
reviews
Source

Based on the novel by John Le Carré, Gardener starts with a murder, as any good mystery does. British diplomat Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes), assigned to Nairobi, sees his world crumble when his wife, activist Tessa Quayle (Rachel Weisz), is found brutally mutilated in a remote area of Northern Kenya. His colleagues at the British High Commission, especially close friend Sandy (Danny Huston), believe the usually mild-mannered Justin will quietly let them handle the matter. Up to this point in… Continued

Source
rating  PETER TRAVERS - August 11, 2005
This late-August release comes in the nick of time to prove a point: Movies that give a damn do have a place in summer.

Director Fernando Meirelles, justly Oscar nominated for 2003's City of God (set in the slums of his native Brazil), again performs visual miracles that resonate with feeling. He and screenwriter Jeffrey Caine put a human face on John le Carre's novel of sex, lies and dirty politics in modern Africa. Prepare for a thrilling ride.

Ralph Fiennes meets all the challenges of… Continued