The Constant Gardener

For once I will bypass the traditional "movie review" detailing of the technical and artistic aspects of film, despite "The Constant Gardener" presenting itself as utterly brilliant here. Instead, I am forced to recognize that such elements must ultimately take a back seat to the clarity and brutality of the film´s message.

To best synthesize this, I have elected a stubby and unpretentions, albeit melodious little word as perhaps the most emblematic in dissecting what is truly essential in this film. I believe this word´s versatility is what makes it so applicable for this task.

And so, in light of the tragically common and calamitous events which ravage the African continent, and which are so sublimely depicted in "The Constant Gardener", I offer you the word:

WAKE


1. a) To cease to sleep;
b) To be brought into a state of awareness or alertness;

2. A track, course, or condition left behind something that has passed;

3. In the aftermath of; as a consequence of.

4. To keep watch or guard, especially over a corpse.


How exactly are these definitions applicable? Simple:


1. We who live confortably and blissfully, eyes closed in REM, unaware of the African catastrophy, must wake up to reality.

2. The mindless, soulless, cash-driven exploration of the African continent and the African people leaves in its wake an evergrowing cemetery of nameless faces.

3. In wake of the lack of the most basic of human needs, Africans themselves inflict their own wave of death and destruction.

4. Before the collective burial of Africa, the planet blindly attends what seems to be an interminable wake.


Some movies are prizeworthy not because of the art, but because of the humanity.