Cinematic Gardens and the Subconscious : Nature, Symbolism, and the Psyche on Film

INTRODUCTION

In the history of cinema, gardens, parks, courtyards, and other green spaces have always been much more than mere backdrops or filming locations. They act as sites where desires, anxieties, and fantasies come to life—places where characters search for meaning, whether in peaceful sanctuaries or mysterious, maze-like landscapes. These environments also present a vision of nature shaped and maintained by human hands, often contrasted with wild, untamed areas—highlighting the ongoing tension between order and chaos.

Whether it’s the enclosed garden in The Secret Garden (1993), reflecting grief and self-discovery; the manicured suburban lawns in Broken Flowers (2005), signaling social status; the grand palace gardens in Last Year at Marienbad (1961), distorting time and memory; the colonial plots in The New World (2005), revealing power dynamics between settlers and Indigenous peoples; or the stylized battlefield of the Japanese garden in Kill Bill (2003)—gardens in film have long mirrored deeper social realities or emotional states, serving as open windows into the unconscious.

Aimed at both film enthusiasts and garden lovers, this lecture series explores the role and symbolism of cinematic gardens across four themed sessions: Gardens & Power, Gardens & Love, Gardens & Crime, and Gardens & The Gothic.

GARDENS & POWER

In cinema, gardens often reflect political and social hierarchies—especially in period dramas, where baroque landscapes become expressions of royal splendor and authority.

In Barry Lyndon (1975), aristocratic gardens accentuate class divisions, serving both as symbols of status and displays of power. The Draughtsman’s Contract (1982) places meticulously designed gardens at the center of negotiations and sexual intrigue, showing how orderly outdoor spaces can mirror manipulative alliances. Marie Antoinette (2006) uses the lavish gardens of Versailles to underscore extravagance and foreshadow the fall of the monarchy. In The New World (2005), the cultivated plots of the Jamestown colony illustrate the rise of power structures as settlers tame and dominate the land—exposing the tensions between them and Indigenous populations.

Far from being havens of peace, these manicured landscapes become dynamic stages for shifting alliances, hidden agendas, intrigue, and influence—serving as metaphors for manipulation and the pursuit of power.