| Film and DVD Reviews FILM REVIEW
The Constant Gardener
By Patrick Ryan
It’s easy to turn your nose up at films that are deemed to be worthy.
The Constant Gardener is one such film but it is made with such depth and
genuine emotion that you will be hard pressed not to get caught up in it.
Ralph Fiennes plays a British diplomat living in Africa whose wife Tessa
is found raped and murdered.
Initially it looks as if she was merely the victim of bandits but when
he delves into things it emerges that she may have been silenced for campaigning
against a pharmaceutical giant.
Director Fernando Meirelles proves that City Of God was no fluke with
a barnstorming example of what can be achieved with a great cast and cracking
script.
Based on a novel by John Le Carre, this is a non-linear film which isn’t
afraid to tell half the story in flashback.
There’s a genuine tinge of sadness at the death of Tessa as we are shown
glimpses of her relationship with her husband.
Rachel Weisz has never been better than here and she has got to be a
certainty for an Oscar nod.
Fiennes is as awesome as ever and will no doubt pick up his usual nomination
as well.
The real star of the show is Meirelles who conjures a wonderfully vivid
world from which the complicated story unfolds.
Intelligent, thought provoking, poignant and, most importantly, enjoyable.
Starring Ralph Fiennes, Rachel Weisz and Danny Huston.
Directed by Fernando Meirelles.
In My Father’s Den
DVD REVIEW
By Patrick Ryan
When Matthew McFadyen announced that he was leaving Spooks to pursue
a movie career a lot of eyebrows were raised.
The critics were instantly silenced with the release of this low-key
drama set in New Zealand.
McFadyen plays a photographer who returns home for his father’s funeral
some 17 years after he left town.
He then strikes up an unlikely friendship with the daughter of his former
girlfriend much to the disapproval of the small town community.
When she goes missing everybody puts two and two together but is there
more happening here than meets the eye?
In the best movie tradition the scandal starts to unlock a few skeletons
in the townsfolk’s cupboard.
First time director McGann deserves credit for crafting a film that manages
to be both non-linear and engrossing in equal measures.
The real stars of the film are McFadyen and Barclay whose chemistry holds
the film together.
They enjoy a believable relationship and it’s easy to see why a certain
train of thought would be implanted in the viewer.
The tone of the film is both beautiful and haunting. Neither has the
word been more apt than it is here.
In My Father’s Den creates a world of lost souls, wasted lives, hidden
secrets, lies and above all an underlying theme of hope.
It’s hypnotic and beautiful in equal measure. The find of the year by
a clear distance.
Starring Matthew McFadyen, Emily Barclay and Colin Moy.
Directed by Brad McGann.
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