Actors: Ralph Fiennes, Rachel Weisz, Bill Nighy, Pete Postlethwaite
Review Summary and Plot Commentary about The Constant Gardener
This movie is about Justin Quayle and his wife Tessa. Tessa fights for African's rights and stumbles across a company called the Three Bees which is testing out its unsafe immunisations on the innocent civilians in Kenya. Tessa keeps these findings a secret from Justin but goes over to Africa to investigate. Justin was to follow a couple of days later but bad news comes. Tessa is found murdered. Now Justin is investigating to find out what happened to his wife and why. Over in Africa, Justin finds himself in constant danger, no one able to be trusted.
--Laura B, Resident Scholar
Career British diplomat Justin Quayle (Fiennes) is employed at the midlevel in the Kenyan embassy. His wife Tessa (Weisz), a crusading journalist on behalf of human rights, turns up dead in a wreck up country. She had been traveling with black doctor Arnold Bluhm (Hubert Kounde), who is missing. Were they having an affair? Justin risks ruining his career by investigating his wife's death -- a murder, it turns out, with connections to huge and illegal pharmaceutical interests that are testing new drugs on unwary African citizens -- on his own. This 2005 thriller directed by Brazilian Fernando Meirelles is based on the bestselling novel by John Le Carre.
--David Loftus, Resident Scholar
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Analysis of The Constant Gardener
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Movie Actual chase scenes or violence - 20% Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40% Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40%
Time/Era of Movie:
- present (2000-2010)
Medical Thriller?
Yes
Medical Plotlets:
- wild experiments on people
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- diplomat
Age:
- 40's-50's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Hair color?
- blonde
- brunette (Brown)
Hair style
- short/standard straight (man)
Body type
- average (man)
Unclothed?
- Chest
Events of movie makes character more...
- sad
- tougher
Ethnicity/Nationality
- British
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Secondary Main Character
Identity:
- Female
Hair color
- brunette (Brown)
Hair style
- (woman) medium/shoulderlgn, straight
- (woman) long curly
Body type
- ample bosom & buttocks (woman)
- average (woman)
Unclothed?
- chest
- buttocks and chest
How much in movie?
- 40%
- 60%
Ethnicity/Nationality
- British
Main Adversary
Identity:
- a criminal organization
Profession/status:
- businessman, big
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- 20%
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- England/UK
Africa
Yes
Part of Africa:
- Black Africa
Misc setting
- building
Style
Accounts of torture and death?
- moderately messy visuals of dead
- gory visuals of deaths
Movie makes you feel...
- concerned
- unhappy
How many deaths in film?
- 4-8
Sex/nudity in movie?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- kissing
- seeing breasts
Kind of violence:
- land battles
- guns
Unusual forms of death
- perforation--bullets
Any profanity?
- Occasional swearing
- Some foul language
Is this movie based on a
- book
