Review of Master Gardener (2023) by Moviemitch96 — 25 May 2023

Famed writer/director Paul Schrader concludes his unofficial trilogy of thematically similar films that each examine a man with a haunted/troubled past having to come to grips with their own demons. First we got Ethan Hawke in 'First Reformed' as a priest experiencing a crisis of faith and increasing anxiety over climate change and the state of the world while still grappling over the loss of his son in the Iraq War.

Then we got Oscar Isaac as a drifting gambler trying to run from his past memories of torturing prisoners in the military. And finally, we get Joel Edgerton as the horticulturalist of a wealthy dowager (Sigourney Weaver) attempting to bury his past as a former homicidal Neo-Nazi white supremacist, while also being tasked with mentoring her grandniece (Quintessa Swindell) in the practice.

While much of the same common themes are present here as in the other two aforementioned films (writing in a journal, voiceover narratives, self-reflection, protecting/avenging a young protege, a cathartic act of violence, etc.

), admittedly, none of it seem to flow quite as seamlessly or as effectively as it did in Schrader's previous two films. The story and motives simply aren't as compelling here, the narrative frustratingly similar to the other two films, and an underwhelming conclusion.

While Edgerton is solid as always, and Weaver and Swindell each turn in worthwhile performances of their own, they simply aren't enough to keep the rest of the film from feeling redundant alongside Schrader's other two mentioned films and protagonists (all of which owe a debt they can never repay to his most famous penned film 'Taxi Driver' and antihero Travis Bickle.

) Overall, Edgerton's gripping performance aside, it's safe to say that Schrader has capped his trilogy off with the weakest of the bunch, as he simply has nothing new to say in regards to the troubled/haunted man with a past they'd rather forget.

These themes and motifs were perhaps stretched out by one film too many with this one.