Alicia I love this movie so much

SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

Livestonth I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

Adeel Hail Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

Tim Kidner I don't want to sound mean or be too harsh on this minor film.However, a plainly irritating, "delicate" (as his father calls him) curly blonde schoolboy and a charisma-free Dirk Bogarde, who could have at least sprung up some light accent don't make for great entertainment these days.Michael Horden, however, is perfect as the work-is-all diplomat, who's so far removed from real life by his over protection for his son, that the story becomes about him and of a spent dinosaur of imperialist bigot-ism. Every other review chants on about homophobic this and that, but, any child, boy or girl who is cocooned by an oft absent but overbearing single parent is going to find company, solace and friendship in any stranger who spends any time at all within their sight or grasp. Thus, it's perfectly natural for that child to explore beyond the strict boundaries set out - it's natural exploration. Any adult who sees a change for the better in that child is most likely to quietly encourage it.Jose (Bogarde) is just an everyday Joe and as the Spanish Gardener in question, sees the increasing injustices to the boy and then, to himself. Quietly reliable, he is the opposite to the boy's father and so they click. Interfering house staff, fed up with both master and child do them no favours. The film then proceeds in a routine manner of misunderstanding, injustice and then, not wanting to spoil the ending...The Technicolour is pallid, you don't see much of Spain and so the overall effect is a bit of a non-event but there is a story there and quite a good one at that.

Neil Doyle DIRK BOGARDE gives one of his more restrained performances in the title role, a man whose friendship with a young boy (JON WHITELEY) drives a wedge between the boy and his over-protective father (MICHAEL HORDERN). It's the interplay between these three characters that drives the story and there are some melodramatic events before the happy ending.But it takes its time in developing the characterizations, sags in the middle and then picks up again during the last half-hour when all the melodramatic conflicts have to be resolved.Unfortunately, the TCM print shows murky color photography (especially after showing a dazzling print of BLACK NARCISSUS). Whether the film was shot in a process other than the usual British color I don't know, but the color photography was sometimes less than satisfying.The story is one of friendship that the boy so badly needs when his father has too little time to share many activities with him. The bond between him and the Spanish gardener is based on mutual trust and the boy comes to hate his father when he realizes that he's been the cause of the man being jailed for a crime he didn't commit.JON WHITELEY gives a remarkably natural performance for a child actor and his scenes with DIRK BOGARDE and MICHAEL HORDERN are excellently played.There are problems of pacing that plague some parts of the film, but the last half is particularly absorbing and leads to a satisfying conclusion. Well worth watching.

John Frame Nicholas is a `sensitive' British pre-teen, an overprotected only son who is forced by circumstance to accompany his unfamiliar father to a new posting as Ambassador to a Spanish region.The residential estate's handsome gardener, Jose (played by Dirk Bogarde), takes the boy under his wing, teaching him to enjoy his physicality, the beauty of nature and the joy of life itself.Even though the father appreciates the burgeoning health and happiness in his son, he allows jealousy and internalised homophobia to determine his actions.In a dramatic conclusion father, son and friend all prove their integrity and devotion.Over the years, each time I've seen this film I'm amazed by its beautiful colour and enthralled the interplay of the characters. I get a greater feeling of the father as a self-loathing homosexual - but there is no evidence that this is the case. Certainly the audience must expect an accusation of paedophilia - but when Jose is accused of stealing and imprisoned, then that still gets him out of Nicholas' life. The Spanish Gardener is, above all, a fine film about the value of `mentoring'.

Antonio-37 Jon Whiteley stars as young Nicholas, a lonely and troubled English boy living on a Spanish estate with his cold father, played by Michael Hordern. Dad has money and power, but no time or attention for his son who is desperate for a male role model.Dirk Bogarde stars as the gardener, who starts out caring for the plants then begins to care for Nicholas too.This movie is based on the novel by the famous English physician, A. J. Cronin. How Green Was My Valley, with Roddy McDowell is another of his famous novels made into a movie, which also tells a boy's life story.Nicholas becomes happy through the attention and caring of the gardener. But Dad is jealous of the influence of the hired help on his son. Yet the two have fun with simple things, like a fishing trip to the mountains.The dark part of the movie is the father's use of power and influence to cruelly sever the relationship between the two. The loss of his son's happiness means nothing, power means all.Contrast this movie to Captains Courageous, three movie versions available, by Rudyard Kipling. Here, a neglected boy finds love from a simple fish boat captain. This care and attention turns the boy into a proper man. Such is the power of love.