In the tradition of such masterpieces like "The Third Man", Fernando Muerilles' excellent opus "The Constant Gardener" follows Feinne's character traveling around the world to discover the mystery of the death of his loved one. With amazing cinematography, and brutal tension "The Constant Gardener" is a gorgeous and heartbreaking murder mystery involving Feinne's character Dr. Justin Quayle whose wife Tessa dies in Africa. He travels to Africa to identify her body and then is intent on discovering who or whom murdered her after her discovers it was foul play. Much like an array of films that were released in 2005, "The Constant Gardener" pushes its message that is still resonant in American society both about the corruption in the medical and pharmaceutical industry, and our lack of support with Africa and their AIDS pandemic.

But what "The Constant Gardener" has going for it is that it's a constantly evolving story from beginning to end becoming a tragedy, then a fractured romance, then a political thriller and so on as we follow Dr. Quayle a very well known right winger who discovers that the causes he's spoken against really end up being as dire as his wife made them out to be. Weiss gives the best performance of her career yet with her role as Tessa a woman so dwarfed by her own causes that it begins to take a toll on her health, but she's intent on improving a situation that may very well be out of her control. She and Justin's romance from the beginning is impulsive, and as they further get to know one another they realize they were never really aware of each other's emotions of thoughts.

The film really doesn't end up becoming a typical thriller, but more about a man who finds his wife through discovering her death and as we chronicle the days leading up to her death, we get a better sense of their connection and lack thereof. The most resonant message during "The Constant Gardener" wasn't about big corporations but more about how big business medicine consistently refuses to help Africa. Fiennes gives a very good performance as Justin conveying a strong sense of desperation and exhausting need to uncover this murder and further pay respect to the spirit of his wife. All the while, being able to connect with these causes and human tragedies he sought out to disconnect himself from while his wife was alive. Justin's character becomes less of a corporate man looking from the outside in and more of an activist witnessing the horrors in front of his eyes and discovering why Tessa felt the need to help. Merielles direction is beautiful and brisk with some amazing cinematography, and excellent landscapes.

I love how in one sequence Tessa is walking along the African landscape, and she's out of focus while the landscape remains in-focus, a perfectly symbolic statement of her character and how she feels in over her head. This is a woman who is so desperate to be in more places than one but is ruined by the very fact that she can't. The situation in Africa is almost hopeless but she's one who is ruined mentally and physically by her own drive to help. "The Constant Gardener" is helped by some very well written dialogue, and forms into a truly engrossing mystery that, paired with Fiennes' raw acting skills, make it a beautiful film very much worth watching. "The Constant Gardener" lives up to the hype, and it's well worth taking a gander at.

One real aspect of "The Constant Gardener" I realized while talking to a fellow movie critic was that the film is rather slow. The trailers painted "The Constant Gardener" as somewhat of a fast paced if not paced thriller with a man seeking his wife's murderers which would have supplied us with more events. I didn't want an Michael Bay action thriller with explosions, but I would have appreciated the film were it quicker and more urgent in its story telling and concept. Some of the scenes did indeed drag on, and it was disappointing.

Fiennes proves why he's one of Hollywood's best, Weisz earns that Oscar nomination, and Merielles gives some utterly amazing direction in a truly worthy successor to "The Third Man" a sad, taut, and excellent global mystery that's well worth the critical raves.

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