 Tagline: Walk a mile you'll never forget. Miracles happen in unexpected places, even in the death-row cell block at Cold Mountain Penitentiary. There John Coffey, a gentle giant of a prisoner with supernatural powers, brings a sense of spirit and humanity to his guards and fellow inmates. Tom Hanks leads a stellar ensemble (including Michael Clarke Duncan as Coffey) in this emotional, uplifting story of guards and captives; husbands and wives; prisoners and a remarkable mouse named Mr. Jingles; and on another level, of a moviemaker and his source. That filmmaker is Frank Darabont, who returns after his 1994 directorial debut The Shawshank Redemption to adapt another tale by Stephen King into stirring, crowd-pleasing entertainment nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Storyline: Death Row guards at a penitentiary, in the 1930's, have a moral dilemma with their job when they discover one of their prisoners, a convicted murderer, has a special gift. Written by Guy Johns Cast Notes: Tom Hanks (Paul Edgecomb), David Morse (Brutus "Brutal" Howell), Bonnie Hunt (Jan Edgecomb), Michael Clarke Duncan (John Coffey), James Cromwell (Warden Hal Moores), Michael Jeter (Eduard Delacroix), Graham Greene [II] (Arlen Bitterbuck), Doug Hutchison (Percy Wetmore), Sam Rockwell ('Wild Bill' Wharton), Barry Pepper (Dean Stanton), Jeffrey DeMunn (Harry Terwilliger), Patricia Clarkson (Melinda Moores), Harry Dean Stanton (Toot-Toot), Dabbs Greer (Old Paul Edgecomb), Eve Brent (Elaine Connelly). User Comment: alan photog from Windsor, Canada, 9 January 2000 • The Green Mile is a masterwork. This is film as art, at it's very best. The depth of the cast is extraordinary, with all of the players delivering excellent performances. There is a clear sense here that all involved in the production knew that this was something special, and gave it their all. See this film if you truly enjoy actors giving everything to their craft. Watch for the countless subtleties of expression, and the great power that the cast creates with silence. This is evident in the opening sequence and remains throughout. Above all, Michael Duncan as John Coffey is exceptional. He brings gripping emotion to a unique, fascinating character. The Green Mile should bring you joy, laughter, and if you are like most in the theater this night, tears. BRAVO! Summary: Film was invented for creations like this. User Comment: Henrik Koskinen (henrik.koskinen@hut.fi) from Espoo, Finland, 10 February 2000 • Frank Darabont returns to the directors chair with another adaptation of Stephen Kings novel. The events take place at a death row, the guards call the green mile. The story is a layered, rather character-driven fantasy tale of the events that transpire at "the mile" after the arrival of a giant man, John Coffey (Michael Duncan), convicted of the murder of two small girls. Actually this is not one single story, but several tied together seamlessly. A character-driven movie requires a lot from the cast, and fortunately when it comes to cast, The Green Mile delivers. As the poster of the movie tells, this movie stars Tom Hanks as Paul Edgecomb, senior prison guard of the mile, and as always he performs very well indeed. Yet the cast around him is even more spectacular, perhaps partially due to them being relatively unknown. With a face you know, one inevitably remembers previous performances, and the new role is coloured by this. Doug Hutchison as Percy Wetmore, a mean spirited prison guard was particularly impressive, yet his character could have been given more depth. The most captivating was the performance of Michael Duncan. It is hard to find a flaw in this movie. The camerawork is superb, cast wonderful and direction flawless. The movie's considerable length, a bit over three hours, is something that had me worried. Yet the marvellous cast and the peaceful yet firm pace of the movie held my attention progressively through the three hours right to the touching culmination. Many will find this movie to be too long, but I for one was delighted of the style, combination of simplicity of events and depth of characters and conversation. All in all the The Green Mile is a very touching drama, with the joys and sorrows of the life pictured with great skill, if not the best movie of the year. Summary: A rare gem of casting and direction. IMDb Rating (06/29/17): 8.5/10 from 860,202 users Top 250: #36 IMDb Rating (01/15/10): 8.1/10 from 112,183 users Top 250: #123 IMDb Rating (06/01/01): 8.3/10 from 16,403 users Top 250: #80
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