Master Gardener: Film Review
I’m starting to think that I just don’t vibe with Paul Schrader‘s recent style of storytelling – I didn’t like First Reformed, I was underwhelmed by The Card Counter and Master Gardener is another disappointment.
The film stars Joel Edgerton as Narvel, the master gardener of Gracewood Gardens, a private estate owned by wealthy dowager Norma (Sigourney Weaver). One day, she asks him to take on her great-niece Maya (Quintessa Swindell) as his apprentice. They fall for each other, although the revelation of his original identity soon tests their romance.
Master Gardener moves very slowly and I couldn’t believe the story. There is no way Maya would want to be with Narvel after finding out about his neo-Nazi past (not a spoiler, this is in the trailer). He is a changed person with a new identity but that doesn’t eradicate his past racist beliefs and how he acted on them before. I didn’t want them to be together, which is the whole crux of the movie, and there was no chemistry between Edgerton and Swindell to make it even remotely believable.
The film has some interesting ideas but it just never explored them with any depth. There needed to be more conversations about Narvel’s past and how he reconciles that with the present but it isn’t addressed adequately enough in the dialogue and it left me feeling very unsatisfied. When the film ended, I felt deflated because I expected there to be more to it and because I was not on board with the conclusion.
I can’t fault the performances though. Edgerton is as strong as ever as a stoic gardener who could easily switch into a threatening thug; there’s an undercurrent of danger and volatility about him. Swindell gets their chance to shine when Maya discovers Narvel’s past and becomes confused and conflicted, while Weaver is excellent as per usual as Narvel’s selfish, jealous and demanding boss.
I have reviewed three Schrader films since I became a critic and I’m starting to wonder if his work is just not for me as I’ve felt underwhelmed every time.
In cinemas from Friday 26th May