ChikPapa Very disappointed :(

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Brendon Jones It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Edwin The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

thinker1691 From a Novel written by A. J. Cronin and a well directed film by Philip Leacock comes this endearing and touching story of a young boy named Nicholas Brande (Jon Whiteley). His father is a career English diplomat (Michael Hordern){Great acting} who has been posted to Spain in a rather secondary and disappointing position. Hardened by his lackluster assignment and in addition to his wife leaving him, he seeks solace in his young son. Unfortunately, because of his father's extremely stern behavior, his son instead finds friendship with Jose, a compassionate and understanding " Spanish Gardener " played adroitly by Dirk Bogarde. (a Marvelous role) While the Father tries his clumsy best to get close to his son, the boy instead drifts farther away. Meanwhile Garcia the chauffeur (Cyril Cusack) proves not only to be a thieving conniving drunk, but equally devious in that he arranges for Jose to be blamed for a stolen watch. The movie is a superb story of friendship, love and compassion. The Entire cast which includes Bernard Lee, Geoffrey Keen are great in creating a Classic and a must see film for Bogarde fans. Easilly recommended to all. ****

dbdumonteil You do not change a winning team:Dirk Bogarde and the young Whiteley shone in Crichton's "hunted" a harrowing work you should absolutely see if you have not."The Spanish gardener" is perhaps not as successful artistically and after the trick of the watch ,the movie becomes a bit "too much" ,turning José into a martyr and dad as a monster of selfishness and hatred ,although it was watered down,compared to the novel (the scenes with the so-called shrink were omitted and José survives,to make the movie "suitable for all audiences")But "the Spanish gardener " is a very endearing work,very simple,and it's this simplicity ,this spontaneity ,we are so in need today;although Bogarde is made up to look "Spanish" -he who is British to the core-,his talent marvelously survives.The young boy is equally efficient and when we share their simple pleasures of life,we are overjoyed;the father is not really bad,but he poisons his child with affection and protection ("Nicco" has a medical exam every week it seems) and the kid stands no chance to open up :an "illiterate" (not true by the way ;the gardener speaks (no accent)and writes English,which is a bit implausible)crude working man teaches a diplomat's son the outside world ,they go fishing ,they meet children with whom the brat plays cards :not only his child is "stolen" but it is by an uneducated man ,not from the high society he is part of;the father's hate knows no bounds.This moving movie is suitable for the whole family;it shows that a simple man can see clearer than a well-respected one,that humble people are sometimes happier ,and moreover,they can help their fellow men in their pursuit of happiness ;José told us so :"he is not happy".like this ....try these......Charles Crichton "hunted"(1952) Luigi Comencini 'Incompreso'(1967) and 'Voltati Eugenio"(1979)

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.

stryker-5 A minor English diplomat is posted to Catalunya in the aftermath of his collapsed marriage. He takes his young boy with him, with visions of nurturing the father-son bond. Unfortunately, Brande is a 'stuffed shirt', a cold prig of a man who fails to comprehend his son's needs. He orders the gardens of the residence to be reduced to bland English regularity, instead of leaving them as a wild, overgrown delight for a child's imagination. Jose is jobless and penniless, but the local pelota champion is a prince among men - young, handsome, charismatic and kind. When Jose is taken on as the gardener, he begins to supplant Brande in Nico's affections. A decision was obviously taken, pre-production, to dispense with Spanish accents. There is some sense in this, because it can seriously detract from the film's purpose if the actors are constantly struggling to sustain funny voices, but it does produce an odd result. Dirk Bogarde is 'darkened up' for the part of Jose and looks great, but his smooth middle-class English delivery seems incongruous in the mouth of a Catalan labourer. When Nico visits Jose's home, every generation of the extended family speaks flawless English. That would be amazing in the year 2000: how likely was it in 1956? Brande (played beautifully by Michael Hordern as a spiritual cripple) embarks on a campaign of emotional blackmail towards Nico and a policy of bullying Jose. He is incapable of seeing that this approach is doomed to failure, or that the subtly obsequious Garcia (Cyril Cusack) is the Iago to his own Othello. The ungracious refusal of Jose's fish marks the first breach of trust between father and son, but character is fate, and Brande is set on a course from which he cannot extricate himself. The confrontation between Brande and Nico on the staircase is one of the best things in the film. Young Jon Whiteley, in the part of Nico, gives an outstanding performance. Bogarde plays the accusation scene with spot-on coolness, but would the theft of a watch, even at Franco's apogee, even if it involved a foreign diplomat, merit custody, handcuffs and an armed Civil Guard escort? Would someone accused of such a minor offence really prefer to take to the hills as a brigand? Brande's Lear-like volte face in the rain-sodden mill is an affecting scene, and though the whole thing is rather far-fetched, it works as an entertaining fable.