Time: 111 Minutes
Age Rating: M
Cast:
Joel Edgerton as Narvel Roth
Sigourney Weaver as Norma Haverhill
Quintessa Swindell as Maya Core
Esai Morales as Oscar Neruda
Director: Paul Schrader

I have been really liking Paul Schrader’s recent output of movies, so it’s no surprise that I was curious about his latest, Master Gardener. It seemed to be in line with his last couple of movies, First Reformed and The Card Counter, but interestingly it seemed to have something of a divisive reaction. While I don’t think it’s on the level of either of those two movies, I think that Master Gardener is really good on the whole.

As the third movie in Schrader’s “Man in a Room” trilogy, Master Gardener is definitely similar to the previous two entries, in that it is a character study of a troubled protagonist, who writes in a journal and narrates his thoughts. In fact, the first shot of the movie is of its main character writing in a journal. Overall, it’s a slow, melancholic and engaging thriller drama, and I found its outlook on romanticism and redemption to be compelling. Unsurprisingly, it does tackle some challenging subject matter, and while I won’t reveal the past that Joel Edgerton’s protagonist is reckoning with, it is probably the darkest and most controversial of the trilogy. So it’s all the more surprising that Master Gardener is the least confrontational of the trilogy, definitely far less angry and oppressive compared to The Card Counter. There’s a strong emotional core, it has a surprising tenderness to it, and even a surprising glimmer of hope by the end. So in some ways, it is a good and fitting note to conclude this trilogy on.

As Paul Schrader’s latest troubled protagonist, Joel Edgerton gives the best performance I’ve seen from him. He is excellent as a conflicted gardener attempting to move past and hide his haunting past, and making attempts at redemption. Quintessa Swindell is also amazing in their part, delivering a nuanced and layered performance. The chemistry between Swindell and Edgerton is very good, even though I don’t think that their central romance is as fleshed out as it could’ve been. Sigourney Weaver is also really good and memorable in her supporting role. 

Paul Schrader as usual does a great job at directing. It is wonderfully filmed with perfect shots and framing, the gardening scenes are particularly beautiful with the close ups of the flowers and plants. The score from Devonté Hynesis is also really good and effective at setting the tone for the film.

Master Gardener is a quiet and engaging character study, greatly directed and with fantastic performances, especially from a career best Joel Edgerton. It’s already proving to be a really polarizing movie amongst many, but if you liked First Reformed or The Card Counter, I think it’s worth a watch at least.