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With: Joel Edgerton, Sigourney Weaver, Quintessa Swindell, Esai Morales, Eduardo Losan, Victoria Hill, Amy Le, Erika Ashley, Timothy McKinney, Jared Bankens, Matt Mercurio, Christian Freeman
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Written by: Paul Schrader
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Directed by: Paul Schrader
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MPAA Rating: R for language, brief sexual content and nudity
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Running Time: 111
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Date: 05/19/2023
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Plant-Based
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
Paul Schrader's drama touches on white supremacy in a fascinating, yet troubling way, but even so, its balancing act of tenderness and kindness, and its luxuriating in the beauty of flora, wins the day.
Narvel Roth (Joel Edgerton) is a horticulturalist in charge of Gracewood Gardens, an estate owned by the wealthy Norma Haverhill (Sigourney Weaver). He lives a simple life, writing in his journal, working with his staff — Xavier (Eduardo Losan), Maggie (Erika Ashley), Isobel (Victoria Hill), and John (Christian Freeman) — and teaching them all about the science and art of gardening. Occasional flashbacks, and glimpses of some disturbing tattoos, reveal a violent past that he prefers to keep hidden.
Then, Norma's grand-niece Maya (Quintessa Swindell), whose mother has just died, comes to the Gardens, and Norma asks Narvel to take her on as an apprentice. Things seem to be going well until Maya has a violent encounter with someone from her old life, and Narvel's decision to do something about it begins to unravel his carefully-manicured facade.
Master Gardener doesn't reveal all its information at once, and there are early images that are disquieting, such as Norma's character (apparently) admiring Narvel's Nazi tattoos, or Narvel's strange haircut, which resembles a German SS officer's from WWII.
As the movie goes on, it becomes clear that Narvel is considered more or less reformed. His staff is diverse, and he appears to harbor no bigotry. In introducing Maya, Schrader makes it clear that Narvel is a new person, but the veteran filmmaker is also reaching back into his own bag of tricks — back to Taxi Driver and Hardcore — to tell a story of an older man coming to the "rescue" of a younger woman.
Schrader takes things between them a little too far, a little too quickly, for comfort, while at the same time, leaving out the through-line that would explain Narvel's turning from a life of hate to a life of nurturing. So things feel a little off-balance, but even so, Master Gardener is admirably delicate in the way it intertwines its characters around one another and subtly ties them into the themes of nature. We're a part of it, both as predictable and as unpredictable as any plant.
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