2005: Ralph Fiennes in The Constant Gardener
Tuesday, August 18, 2020 at 11:00AM by Lynn Lee
Our first glimpse of Justin Quayle is in darkened silhouette. The second is a medium-long shot of him tending his garden. The camera only comes in for a closeup as he’s hit with the worst news of his life—and even then, we see the impact register only gradually. That slow burn reveal, that deceptive quietness masking layers of anguish, sums up not only The Constant Gardener as a whole but Ralph Fiennes as Justin. It's one of the finest performances of 2005 and among the best of the esteemed actor's career...
Today, of course, The Constant Gardener is remembered mainly for Rachel Weisz’s Oscar-winning turn as Justin’s firebrand wife, Tessa. Her death sets the narrative, and Justin, into motion. (The movie was also nominated for adapted screenplay, editing, and score, and as Nathaniel’s discussed, was probably just outside the best picture field.) Weisz is excellent, as I’m sure the upcoming Smackdown will discuss in great detail, as is the film, which I responded to much more on a recent rewatch than I did at the time of its original release. Maybe knowing the twists and turns in advance, I was better able to appreciate the craft with which the central mystery is structured. Maybe I’m less disposed now to compare it to Meirelles’ previous film, City of God, which had struck me like a thunderbolt just a couple of years earlier. Or maybe the underlying story of murderous malfeasance by a big-pharma company hellbent on getting its miracle drug to market has especially uncomfortable resonance in the era of COVID-19.
But even in 2005, I was impressed by Fiennes and what he was able to do with a protagonist who could have come across as dull or inexpressive but in his hands becomes an achingly poignant embodiment of grief spurred to action. His acting isn’t in the least showy (and we know Fiennes can do showy), but rather an extraordinary exercise in nuance and control that exemplifies the adage “less is more.” The result is a remarkably affecting portrait of a soft-spoken, make-no-waves diplomat who evolves into a dogged investigator and unlikely bearer – for at least a little while – of his wife’s crusading torch.
Take that first, critical scene when Justin learns of Tessa’s murder from his boss, Sandy (Danny Huston). Fiennes’ face remains completely still, and other than an almost imperceptible dimming of his expression and a glimmer of what might be a tear in his eye, shows no sign of shock or consternation. Even when he’s told Tessa was probably cheating on him (a suspicion we’ll later learn he was already nursing) and that her supposed lover may have killed her, he doesn’t flinch. He merely looks down and murmurs, “That’s good of you to tell me, Sandy. It can’t have been easy.” Later, when faced with Tessa’s badly burned-up corpse, he closes his eyes for just a moment, but apart from a slight huskiness in his voice as he identifies her, retains his composure. Fiennes’ restraint somehow makes Justin’s pain sharper and more intensely apparent than a more openly emotional display would have done.
Even as Justin methodically proceeds to unravel the web of corruption and cold-blooded betrayals that led to Tessa’s death, he hardly ever raises his voice or forgets his manners even in the tensest moments or at the most horrifying discoveries. Yet Fiennes effectively conveys the unexpected resolve and tenacity that lies beneath Justin’s nonconfrontational exterior – perhaps channeling Tessa’s spirit, perhaps drawing on something latent in his own nature. He’s a gardener, after all; he digs.
Interwoven with his increasingly dangerous digging are flashbacks of his life with Tessa that reveal intriguing facets of their relationship and his own indirect complicity in her fate. Both actors do a marvelous job portraying both the chemistry and the inevitable friction between their characters’ polar-opposite temperaments. However, perhaps because the story is told from Justin’s perspective, for most of the movie it’s Fiennes who pulls on our emotions as he veers silently between love, doubt, frustration, and back again to love with only the subtlest variations in his demeanor. If Tessa is the soul of The Constant Gardener, then Justin is its broken but still-beating heart. His breakdown, when it finally happens, feels not so much overdue as hard-earned—as does the zen-like, fatalistic peace that follows the completion of his quest for the truth.
Sadly though unsurprisingly, Fiennes attracted little awards attention in a year filled with much flashier performances and high-profile movies about historical figures. He did get a BAFTA nod, losing to Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote. Notably, apart from Fiennes, the BAFTA lineup for best actor that year was identical to Oscar’s, with Terrence Howard taking the fifth Oscar slot for Hustle & Flow. Fiennes was probably never in contention for that spot; it doesn’t help that male leads who are quiet, gentle, or more reactive than proactive are generally a tough sell for Oscar. Still, in retrospect the Academy really missed out on a chance to recognize some of the strongest work to date by one of our finest living actors. I thought that in 2005, and I still think that today.
More on 2005, our 'year of the month'
- The New Classics: The New World
- When Tilda went Mainstream
- Taraji P Henson in Hustle & Flow
- Colleen Atwood vs Sandy Powell
- Joan Allen in The Upside of Anger
- Gong Li in Memoirs of a Geisha
- The Year of Joseph Gordon-Levitt
- Mercedes Morán in The Holy Girl
- Vintage '05 Pop Culture Highlights
- Rodrigo Prieto's cameo in Brokeback Mountain
- The New Classics: Capote
Reader Comments (15)
Oh, my man I love him so.
I'll never understand why the Academy is so resistant to Fiennes, who I think is probably the finest working actor today. Yes, they don't like him when he's quiet and subtle, but they also don't like him when he's flashy and fun (The Grand Budapest Hotel, A Bigger Splash) or bombastic and threatening (In Bruges, The Duchess).
I always felt he was in the 6th spot with the Bafta love.
One of his greatest performances in a career full of them - he’s strangely underrated in my opinion - to think that Strange Days, Spider, Maid In Manhattan, The Constant Gardener and The Grand Budapest Hotel (to name but 5) came from the same actor?
Leading Actor 2005 is stacked - I’d replace Strathairn with Fiennes (Hoffman, Ledger and Howard all make my Top 10 and Phoenix is just outside)...
Thanks for the lovely reminder of why I adore Fiennes and this film.
My favorite Fiennes performance easy, though his firecracker turn in A Bigger Splash is right next to it (and both showcase his versatility as an actor).
His return to their house and his quiet wait at Lake Turkana at the end of the film are beautiful grace notes, and show how economy of words and emotion can be equally emotive, and even more impactful when executed right, than showiness or bombast.
Would have been my pick over nearly every choice in that lineup that year, barring Ledger and Hoffman.
I like him a lot, pretty much all the time (including his voice work), but it's not really surprising he was left out that year given that it was a relatively quiet role and the Best Actor line up was arguably the best/toughest of the last 20 years.(I'd say at least in the top 2 or 3).
I love Fiennes and that he's not been individually nominated since EP is a bit odd considering films he's been great in have done well with the academy.
Personally he wouldn't make a lineup in 05 but for he should've won for Budapest Hotel in 2014.
He is great in this and I do love Ralph Fiennes. I still think he should've been nominated for Best Actor for The Grand Budapest Hotel instead of fucking Eddie Redmayne. My dad hated that guy and never forgave him for beating Michael Keaton.
Agree, should have won for Budapest.
I absolutely adore Ralph Fiennes. One of the great Oscar Injustices (of which there are so many) is that he doesn't have one. Or two.
My Ralph Firmness Oscar nominations and wins*:
The Schindler's List*
The English patiente
The End of the Affair
Spider
The Goblet of Fire
The Constant Gardner
In Bruges
Coriolanus (best picture, director, adapted screenplay and actor)
The Grand Budapest Hotel*
A Bigger Splash*
jules and Kermit - right? His range is fantastic. The Academy doesn't appreciate him enough, that's for sure.
Tom - it's aged incredibly well (both the movie and his performance, and Weisz's too).
Manny - you and me both.
I fell in love with him during the English Patient and love his intensity and range. An actor who can make you feel and watch during a subtle performance is the hallmark of a great actor as opposed to a good one.
I don't get why the Academy is so much more impressed by Daniel Day Lewis, they are both great actors, Fiennes is just under-ppreciated.
Fiennes is such a great actor! He can do so much or little with his face and eyes!
This movie has a cool connection. Lupita Nyongo worked as a production runner during filming in Kenya
And Eva Green was originally cast in the Tessa role. Kate Winslet. Sienna Miller, Naomi Watts and Nicole Kidman audition before Rachel Weisz was cast