“”The Constant Gardener”” conjures frumpy, blue-haired old ladies with wide-brimmed hats eating chicken salad sandwiches in between hours in the greenhouse, or a retarded landscape worker falling hopelessly in love with his master’s orchids. Not a sharp, spare murder mystery set in and around Nairobi, Kenya, where pharmaceutical companies risk the health of millions of A.I.D.S.-infected Africans to increase their profits on new drugs. So there are a few scenes of Ralph Fiennes tending his garden and some dialogue about his plant-worshipping pastime — and it was the title of the book. As the film’s muted impact indicates, the title of one of 2005’s most socially conscious thrillers simply wasn’t thrilling enough.
Worst Title to An Otherwise Good Movie: The Constant Gardener
Mar 2, 2006
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