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This 3 hour epic is unashamedly sentimental but somehow it
manages to pull it all off mainly due to a winning cast that
create some strong characters.
The story is based on a serialised Stephen King novel of the
same name and is set in the Cold Mountain Penitentiary, whose
death row section is nicknamed The Green Mile due the colour
of the floor. The guard in charge of the mile is Paul Edgcumbe
(Tom Hanks). His co-workers include tough guy Brutal (David
Morse) and young buckDean (Barry Pepper). Life seems to run
quite smoothly on Death Row, mainly due to the surprising compassion
that the guards show to their doomed inmates.
Things are turned upside by the arrival of three new players.
First is new guard Percy Wetmore (Doug Hutchison), a snivelling
coward with friends in high places who takes pleasure in tormenting
prisoners. Next is the gigantic John Coffey (Michael Clarke
Duncan) who is convicted of killing two girls but is afraid
of the dark. Lastly there is a psychotic madman (Sam Rockwell)
who revels in causing as much havoc as possible.
It is John Coffey who has the biggest impact on the lives of
the people on the green mile. Initially there is nothing in
the big man's demeanour that suggests that he is capable of
the heinous crime he has been convicted of. As time goes by,
even stranger events begin to suggest that there is something
very special about him as he demonstrates amazing healing powers.
This movie is very long. Although it was entertaining throughout
its length (in itself an indication of quality) I am sure that
the story could have been told in less time. In fact the long
running time seems to serve no purpose other than to allow deeper
character development. This it does extremely well, especially
with the main character Paul Edgcumbe. In the end the movie
is about Paul and the internal conflicts he has to deal with
as a result of the strange events on the green mile. And while
much attention has been focused on the excellent work from Michael
Clarke Duncan, the acting of Tom Hanks is every bit as good
as we have come to expect from him and it is difficult to imagine
anyone else being able to provide a comparable performance.
Credit also should go to director Frank Darabont for getting
the right sort of performances out of his cast.
There are some dodgy elements that threaten to undermine the
film. One of them is the ridiculous spiritual mushiness of the
scene in Melinda's bedroom. Another is the fact that a good
chunk of screen time is taken up by the antics of a performing
mouse.
A pretty good movie.By far the best book adaptation of the
year so far. Just don't try and compare it to Frank Darabont's
previous Stephen King adaptation set in a prison: The Shawshank
Redemption.
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