Greenfingers (2000)
Natasha Little and Clive Owen fall in love amongst the shrubbery
Since seeing Children of Men last week, I've hopped on the "Clive Owen is hot" train which I understand has been servicing much of the populace for many years. Today I received Greenfingers from netflix and watched it with a tremendous amount of guilty pleasure delight. This is not a good movie - it really isn't a movie at all - it's more like a zipped-up Hallmark Hall of Fame tv production. But I confess, I love HHoF feel-good schmaltz.
Owen plays Colin, a reticent convict sent to live in a minimum security facility due to his 15 years of good behavior and possible upcoming parole. He doesn't really care where he goes and doesn't care which job they give him at the new prison either. But, because this is a feel-good movie, his reserve and guilt is slowly pushed aside by his new roommate Fergus (Yes, roommate, they don't have cells at this prison - it looks better than some hotels I've stayed at). Fergus is a wise old codger, a role so necessary to feel-good pictures. Without the wise old codger who would make statements about plants that are really about people? Somehow, Colin and Fergus end up planting a garden on the prison's grounds (the warden's idea) and enlisting several other lovable inmates to join them. Everyone grows to love gardening as the plants enable them to have a metaphor for their renewed self-worth and chance for redemption - a musical montage set to Tears for Fears' "Sowing the Seeds of Love" ensues.
Later, they improbably make the acquaintance of Britain's grand dame of gardening, Georgina Woodhouse, (Helen Mirren having fun with the silliness) and with her help they enter some big gardening contest at Hampton Court (it's probably based on a real thing, but do people actually care enough about gardening in England to stage a whole complicated televised event for it?) Clive Owen also falls in love with Mirren's daughter, Primrose (I could make a joke about her name, but it's too easy), played by Natasha Little. A lot of other stuff happens to the other prisoners that's equally predictable. Basically, it's a phony, unreal movie filled with a fluff message about believing in yourself and not giving up and something about redemption through beauty. If you ever want a movie to curl up with when you don't want to think too much, this would do the trick. Plus, Clive Owen is hot and is actually doing some nice acting in this trifle.