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The Green Mile

The Green Mile

List Price: $19.96
Your Price: $14.97
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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Racism Back in Full Effect
Review: Take one part big, black negro, one part white liberal jailer and one part fantasy and you have "the Green MIle." A black man accused of killing two white girls goes to a jail to await the death penalty. Myth. IN those days, the death penalty would have been meted out by the community at one of their "lynching bees." Secondly, his "magic powers." See, this is the racist mind of Stephen King at work. He has no blacks in his Maine community,and the only blacks he sees are the ones on sports TV. So his image ofd "super black" is in his mind when he writes this story. The black with super powers who is on "equal terms" with less than average whites. Ain't that the way it always is? The Green Mile is a joke and hails back to the days of "Birth of a Nation" in its degree of racism. That's why it got all those awards. Haven't any of you noticed yet that the only way a movie featuring a black gets an academy nod is if the role is degrading? Denzel goes from militant to uncle tom in "GLory;" Butterfly McQueen plays a black steretype in "Gone with the wind;" Morgan Freeman plays a black chauffeur in "Driving Miss Daisy." See? Now we have Duncan, a giant of a man (who one reviewer called a "behemoth") who kowtows to whimpish Tom Hanks. This makes the second time a black man turned in a superior performance to Hanks and Hanks got the nod. The first time was in "Philadelphia" where Denzel stole the show. "The Green Mile" is a joke and an historical insult. Where wree all these liberal white folks when slavery was in existence? THink about it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Another Frank Darabont masterpiece.
Review: This is one of the most beautiful and touching films I've ever seen. This doesn't quite top Darabont's previous effort, The Shawshank Redemption but it is a brilliant movie on it's own. I loved the book, and it was a pleasure to see all those characters come to life on the silver screen. All of King's original characters are casted and acted to perfection.

I really look forward to Darabont's next movie, as he shows quite a lot of talent in film making.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best adaption of any book to movie I've seen yet. . .
Review: Though it varies in small ways from the book, this Stephen King adaption still gets the message across. Tom Hanks is perfect as the hero, Paul Edgecomb. (Paul is the kind of guy you would want to give a hug every day, because he is just so damned nice.) In fact, all the actors are pretty much perfect for their part. The Green Mile takes place in a prison, in E Block (Death Row), where the tiles are the color of faded limes. A mysterious, monstorous inmate arrives (John Coffey), with an amazing healing power only King could think up. This movie really has multiple plots, with multiple climaxes, which makes it all the more enjoyable. I don't know what else to say, except-- buy this movie, read the book, rent it, whatever!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: This is not an over-rating...
Review: And despite the many critical reviews it received, I put this film in the 4-star category. I giggled when reading about the "pseudo-Christ-figure," mentioned in one review, who served up a character for those viewers "starved for kindness." Don't be fooled. John Coffey is Christ in this movie, folks, and it wasn't he who murdered the two girls. You might need to watch the movie again, only this time, pay more attention. (By the way, you mentioned some "prison" movie alternatives without including The Shawshank Redemption. Gee...is it a King thing?) And for another to recommend Magnolia is a great thing, by the way. But I'll admit, it's not for those with any "real depth" to their lives and who might be caught walking out on the "frogs" scene due to lack of understanding or any type of sense of enlightenment from a "'serious' humanistic piece." Let's face it, some of us enjoy simple movies and they probably go well for simple lives. P.S. The only reason I didn't give this film 5 stars was due to the lengthy ending. I felt it was unneeded and somewhat of an overkill. Enjoy.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Why such harsh reviews?
Review: I seriously don't understand all the negative reviews. This was seriously one of the best movies I've seen in a while. The Green Mile is a story about a getnle giant who is sentenced to death for the rape and murder of twin 9 year-old girls. In prison, the guards learn of his supernatural powers to heal. He teahces them all some life lessons. This movie was so great that you didn't even realize you were watching it for 3 hours. This was a very touching and emotional story. It made me and everyone I saw it with cry. I think evryone who has the chance should see this amazing movie.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: No good
Review: I patiently watched the first two hours of this movie with my girlfriend, and at times we were amused by some of the characters ("Wild Bill" & Percy), interested in others (John Coffey, the warden's wife and Tom Hanks and the other prison guards), and we were willing to suspend disbelief (some of the characters and racial issues are a little too pat.)

It was a quirky little movie where most of the inmates being ushered off to their deaths (for who knows what) are the "good guys" (they are all reformed and kind and upstanding prisoners, except for Wild Bill.)

Then all heck started breaking loose. The last 30 minutes to an hour of the film is on the level of Stephen King's "It". Instead of an emotionally satisfying ending, it's a theatre of the absurd almost on the level of a gigantic spider from outerspace who turns into a clown and lures children into the sewers. "The Green Mile" doesn't quite take that absurd of a turn, but given that the film is supposed to be a "serious" humanistic piece, the last hour of the film disappoints with its twists and downturns.

It's too bad. There might have been a film worth making had the writing been better and of a higher caliber. But this was just more drivel being churned out. No real message to the film, no real depth. A lot of decent performances were wasted on a script that doesn't hold up.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Astonishingly Awful!!
Review: A 3 hour movie revolving around a pseudo-Christ-figure with a death wish -- "I'm tired boss, put me out of my misery; it would be a kindness you'd be doing."

A character who says, "He killed them with their love for each other." OK, I'm sure that pertains to Percy and Wild Bill as well.

This movie is way too long (perhaps in hopes of winning some Oscars), it really doesn't make sense (as one reviewer noted, you'll need to be over 30 to understand this, though), featured characters that are simplistic (Snoopy and Garfield are more complex and better drawn characters than any in this movie), and will only appeal to people who are starved for kindness and want their sentimentality served up big in warm, sugary heapin' helpings.

Oh, if for some reason you liked this movie, then you might also want to try Magnolia -- another "gem"! (Watch 'em both for a combined 6 hrs of drivel :)

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Well Worth It
Review: I must be honest and say that I don't understand the harsh reviews about this film. I curiously came to the site to read what others thought about it and I was shocked at some of the customer reviews. To each his own i guess. Everyone, without exception, that I have spoken to about this film said it was outstanding. The three hours fly by due to the superb casting, memorable characters and a superior job of directing by an almost unheard of director named Frank Darabond. I saw the movie when it came out, bought the video, and loaned it to someone else just to stop me from watching it too much. I agree with the editorial review by Doug Thomas except for his opinion that it is too long. There's lotsa three hour movies out there. Just get some popcorn, your favorite drink, go to the john, then sit down and enjoy.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Moving, sometimes hard to understand, a real experience
Review: Green Mile is a fantastic tale of realistic human conditions on death row in a 1935 Louisiana prison....the "green mile". The horror is mitigated only by the compassion and kindness of the Prison Guards-excepting the cruel, sadistic Percy, who's sick behavior contributes to the tension of the condemned men.

The newest prisoner, John Coffee, a hulk of a man, convicted of a heinous crime, ends up as a christ-like figure, with magical powers of healing the human body, his magic contrasting with the realistic conditions of the prison.

The story of the true circumstances of Coffee's imprisonment and his use of magic while in the prison make for a riveting tale. The acting is perfect! The only hole in the movie would seem to be Coffee's execution-why do the guards let him die? I suppose that it is explained only by Coffee's desire to die, to be able to get to heaven, where he can exist in peace-he seems to anticipate heaven as he watches Fred Astaire in the moving picture show. He wants to be allowed to fry and the guards grant him his wish! Tough to swallow but it is the only explanation i can see for his death. Great movie, for 3 hours you will be in another world and you won't even notice the passage of time. And remember: "What happens on the mile, stays on the mile; always has."

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: There's Something about King
Review: In the past I have been disappointed from book to screen transitions, especially with my favorite author Stephen King. And for all those fans of him out there like me, it tends to get annoying, right? I didn't enjoy The Running Man, nor did I like 'Salem's Lot as much as the book. However, The Green Mile is amazing. The movie is almost identical to the book in every way. Some parts are taken out or changed, but overall, I think that the movie stays true to the book about 97%, and that's pretty impressive.

Most everyone knows the plot, so I won't get into that. I would just like to say that this may not be the best movie ever made, but the man who played John Coffey--Michael Clark Duncan, right?--is truly a great actor. When his eyes lit up after seeing the stars in such a long time, you couldn't help but think that it was all true. Tom Hanks does a magnificent job as Paul Edgecombe, but personally I believe he did a better job in Saving Private Ryan. Overall, this is a must-see movie that was cheated out of an Oscar for Best Picture.

So, this proves that the master of horror, Stephen King, can actually write something that impresses us all without the blood and gore. Maybe people will respect him more now, if you haven't learned to already.


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