from nairobi to new orleans

The Constant Gardener is perhaps the least ‘American’ film I’ve seen in ages, both in cast and conception. Watching it on Monday, I noticed people leaving the cinema, perhaps half an hour in. I couldn’t help but see the images of New Orleans merge with those of Nairobi, and I suspect that for some in this corner of the southern US, that juxtaposition was one too uncomfortable to sit through.