The Gardener (1974)

Really Surprised!

Disappointment for a huge fan!

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

One of those movie experiences that is so good it makes you realize you've been grading everything else on a curve.

Warhol entourage beefcake Joe Dallessandro portrays Karl, a gardener in the employment of a wealthy but neglected housewife(Katharine Houghton, miles downstream from her earlier success in GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER). His command of the botanical arts is impressive, but his references are tough to check considering most of his previous employers have died. Suspiciously.Houghton's garden is soon the envy of her upper-crust clique, and her reserved and perpetually bare-chested gardener becomes the object of much lustful flutter among her female friends. The rest of the household staff(natives to the South American environs where this is set and filmed) are less enthusiastic about Karl's presence, and they warn their housemistress of his evil wizardry. Shrugging off this superstitious cautioning, she becomes increasingly drawn to Karl...but when people around her begin to die mysteriously, she comes to suspect a tenebrous connection to the flora cultivated by her brooding and sexually Svengali-like greenskeeper. The bizarre eventuality of this mystery is the manifestation of Karl's true nature. It seems he is...quite literally...a tree.While THE GARDENER is a semi-creditable example of an under-the-radar horror film ethos, it's not likely to have strong appeal to the mainstream viewing integer. Sluggishly paced and lacking 'comme il faut' shocks and bloodshed, it does otherwise manage to build an obfuscous atmosphere of weblike mystique.A mellow horror high for some, probably a harsh toke for others...5/10

I picked this movie up in the USED section at my local Record shop and I have to say, by the cover artwork and synopsis on the back, I was excited to take it home and pop it in. The whole project is really well-done in that way. But that's about it. The film was very 70's, which for me, is a good thing. For most viewers though, this would prove to be a cheesy example of an era that might be better off forgotten. The music is pretty bad and so are the clothes. It's not stylish, its like the Brady Bunch.There is no good gore in this movie. The acting is decent and the guy who plays "The Gardener" is semi-creepy, but the plot just fails. It's not scary in the least bit and the only good scene in the film is the very last one.I had high hopes, I really did. I wanted to like it more, and I still do. I've watched it three times now and I still fail to see how this is a horror movie. It's more like an off-beat romantic drama with a twist. If I had to compare it to something else, I'd say a mix between "Rosemary's Baby," "Play Misty for Me," and "Alice in Wonderland" (the live one) but not as good as any of those films.4 out of 10, kids.

Worth seeing for the unique, catatonic performance of Joe Dallesandro, the strange Warhol poster boy whose fascinating credits include "Black Moon", "Trash", "Heat", "Blood for Dracula" and "Flesh for Frankenstein". Joe, well cast, is The Gardener, a peculiar, often shirtless, infantile fellow who comes to work in Katherine Houghton's garden, a garden so large Joe is able to hang out in it without being seen. Although the trailers suggest a horror film, the actual horror is that there really is none. Aside from one scene of a limb being hacked, nothing horrific happens. The lighting is flat, the performances are forgettable, and the direction is awkward. A plus, however, is the film's wonderful poster art, faithfully reproduced on the new DVD cover and all old VHS's. The film's conclusion confirms The Gardener's supernatural credentials, so it is all the more disappointing that the filmmakers were too chicken to exploit the premise's potential and make a real horror film. The 'Lost in Space' episode 'Attack of the Monster Plants' is a much more memorable attempt to demonize the creatures at the bottom of our gardens.

Ok, I saw it a while ago - but here is what I remember. I think there was a lot of drinking (not by me, though I suggest it if you watch this), a lot of plants, and something to do with Brazil. I may be mistaken, but if you rented this movie, it's not my fault. It isn't the best Funny Bad movie I ever seen (that still goes to Hobgoblins), and sure isn't scary. However, it isn't in the category of unwatchable bad. I felt when watching it, that if MST3K did it - then it would be good. However, by itself - you may just want it to end. And don't expect much from the ending (or the begining/middle for that matter)!Oh yea, and I remember the movie being really "green", that's the best way to describe it. Maybe 'cause it's from the 70s.